Thai Pink Duck Curry

There’s one thing magical in regards to the mixture of wealthy duck meat and Thai pink curry! This duck curry recipe options duck breast with golden pores and skin that’s thickly sliced and served in a coconut pink curry sauce. Add lychees or pineapples for a really particular dish that’s to die for!

I not too long ago loved an attractive Thai pink duck curry at certainly one of my favorite Thai eating places right here in Sydney, Khao Pla in Chatswood, and it impressed me to make my very own. The wealthy flavour of duck meat, with the pink curry sauce, the burst of recent candy juice from the lychees and freshness from the herbs is a kind of consuming experiences that I hope everybody tries a minimum of as soon as of their life!

Plus, as a lot as I really like my dependable Hen Pink Curry, duck is particular. I’ve all the time considered it as a luxurious merchandise and I really like that duck meat is extra readily accessible at grocery retailer as of late. Whereas it’s costlier than hen, making Duck Curry at residence prices, by tough calculations, round 70% cheaper than at a pleasant Thai restaurant the place small bowl can fetch upwards of $30.

Elements in Thai Pink Duck Curry

Right here’s what you should make duck curry. This recipe requires 3 duck breasts totalling 500g/1 lb which makes sufficient curry to serve 4 to five folks.

1. Duck breast

I’ve eaten and seen duck curry recipes made with all types of cuts – complete duck, Marylands (thigh and bone) and breast. Some recipe begin with a cooked Chinese language BBQ duck whereas others use a confit methodology, and a few steam/roast/then fry the duck.

I’ve opted for duck breast – straightforward to prepare dinner, comparatively straightforward to get and since I like biting into the wealthy tender slices of duck smothered within the curry sauce.

The place to search out duck breast – As of late in Australia it’s pretty widespread at massive grocery shops in addition to recent produce shops and butchers. Search for pores and skin on boneless breast. It prices greater than hen (~$18 for 500g / 1 lb), nevertheless it’s particular! A luxurious product reserved for Thai royalty! (So I’m informed by a Thai chef who helped out at RTM a few weeks in the past 😊)

See FAQ for different duck cuts I’ve seen used, and why I didn’t go for them for this recipe.

2. Lychees or pineapples!

To me, lychees are additional particular as a result of the season is so fleeting and I really like how the pearly white balls look in opposition to the pink curry. Nonetheless, I’d by no means hesitate to make use of pineapple as an alternative – ideally recent, else canned.

And – tip for you – Asian branded lychees are literally very, excellent! I used to be taken without warning.

3. thai pink curry sauce

You need to use do-it-yourself pink curry paste or retailer purchased, which is what I’ve opted for. If utilizing do-it-yourself, you’ll need a bit additional fish sauce (as a result of retailer purchased is effectively seasoned already).

Pink curry paste – It’s fairly effectively doc on this web site: Maesri is my most well-liked! Most cost-effective and most genuine flavour, and one can is 115g (1/2 cup) which is the right quantity to make a curry utilizing 1 can of coconut milk. Discover it at massive grocery shops right here in Australia (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms) and in Asian shops (it’s a staple as of late).

Garlic and ginger – Including these provides the shop purchased curry paste a freshness enhance to make it extra like do-it-yourself pink curry paste. It actually makes a distinction! (Be aware: ordinarily I exploit lemongrass however I didn’t really feel it added a lot in duck curry as a result of duck meat is richer in flavour than hen. So I skipped it.
Coconut milk – Not all coconut milk is created equal! Good ones are made with 85%+ coconut so have higher flavour. Economical ones are diluted with water. Ayam is my default (89% coconut). Full fats please! Low fats is thinner and has much less coconut flavour.
Makrut lime leaves – For genuine Thai curry flavour. Pretty accessible as of late at massive grocery shops and Asian shops. They freeze 100% completely which is useful. (Be aware: previously often known as kaffir lime leaves. The identify has been modified because of racial associations.) See FAQ for makes use of for leftover lime leaves.
Fish sauce – That is used because the salt in pink curry. Extra flavour than plain salt!
Sugar – For the fitting contact of sweetness you discover in pink curry sauce.

4. herbs and beans

Thai basil is the basic herb used for Thai cooking, however you possibly can substitute with common basil. The beans may also be substituted with different greens – I selected it for color and form.

Pink chilli – For non-compulsory garnish. Use massive ones for much less warmth and small Birds Eye or Thai Chillis in case you are a spice monster (or declare you might be).
Thai basil – A basic recent herb utilized in Thai cooking, it tastes like common basil with a barely stronger aniseed and barely minty flavour. These days it’s pretty broadly accessible in Australia in massive grocery shops and inexperienced grocers (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms), however significantly better worth in Asian shops! Substitute with common basil (I’ve finished so and it’s nonetheless firm worthy).
Coriander/cilantro – For garnish, Not very important!
Inexperienced beans – I selected this as I believed the inexperienced color would look good within the pink sauce. Snake beans (Asian lengthy beans) are additionally on level, although really, you should use any vegetable you need that you simply assume will work with pink curry sauce.

Easy methods to make Thai Pink Duck Curry

This duck curry recipe is definitely very simple and has a pleasant workflow to it. When you begin cooking, you possibly can have it on the desk in half-hour:

Duck breast – pan seared to render the fats and crisp the pores and skin (10 minutes), completed within the oven (8 minutes) then rested (5 minutes) earlier than slicing.
Pink curry sauce – prep the components whereas the duck is within the pan (it’s palms off), then begin the sauce and have it simmering whereas the duck is within the oven.
Serve – the sauce and duck must be prepared across the identical time, able to plate up and serve!

1. cooking the duck breast

Each duck and hen are poultry, however duck is structurally completely different. Due to this, duck breast cooked to medium uncommon is sort of a stunning steak – tender, wealthy and juicy. Then again, we’d by no means eat hen breast medium uncommon. Chewy! Rubbery!

Be aware: full duck breast cooking explanations acquired prolonged, so I moved it to a separate put up. I determine it will likely be useful for future use! See Easy methods to Cook dinner Duck Breast.

Slash pores and skin – Use a pointy knife to make 5 to six diagonal slashes throughout the pores and skin of the duck, taking care to not lower into the pink flesh. Don’t lower from edge-to-edge, you need the pores and skin to remain in a single piece however simply make slashes within the center.

Then pat the pores and skin dry with paper towels and sprinkle salt and pepper on each side.
COLD pan with NO OIL – Don’t flip the range on but. Place the duck pores and skin aspect down in an unheated oven-proof pan with none oil. The pan may be forged iron, non-stick, or a daily pan.

Overwhelm for flat pores and skin – Place one other pan on high of the duck to weigh it down, not a forged iron one although, it’s a bit too heavy. That is to stop the pores and skin from curling and wrinkling.
Cook dinner on low 10 minutes – Now you possibly can flip the range on! Low if it’s a powerful range, or medium low if it’s a weak burner. The extra slowly you prepare dinner the duck, the extra fats you’ll render out which suggests crispier pores and skin. It’s low upkeep too, as a result of it’s low warmth.

Fats begins to render – After a couple of minutes, take a peek and also you’ll see fats has began to soften out of the duck.
A lot duck fats! At across the 5 to 7 minute mark, your entire pan will probably be lined in duck fats.

Preserve the pan weight on till across the 7 minute mark when the pores and skin has began to go golden and has “set”. Whereas it’s nonetheless comfortable, it could nonetheless wrinkle/curl = rubbery patches = 😭

Golden crispy pores and skin! Preserve cooking till the pores and skin as a result of golden and crispy, across the 10 minute mark, or longer. You’ll be able to flip the warmth up in the direction of the top, as soon as there’s plenty of fats within the pan.
End in oven – When the pores and skin is golden, flip and prepare dinner the flesh aspect for simply 1 minute to seal. Then switch the pan to at 180°C/350°F oven (160°C fan-forced) and roast for 8 minutes or till the interior temperature is 60°C/140°F which is medium ie. mild blush of pink. For medium uncommon (deep pink, like steak), goal for 54°C/130°F (6 minutes).

Don’t fear should you go over, duck breast is nice even totally cooked to 68°C/154.4°F (ie no pink in any respect, like hen breast). Suppose – Chinese language BBQ duck. Totally cooked, and scrumptious!

Relaxation – Then place the duck on a rack set over a plate, or only a plate, and go away it uncovered to relaxation for a minimum of 5 minutes when you end the sauce.
Slice the duck breast simply shy of 5mm / 0.2″ thick. Do that simply earlier than putting it within the curry sauce. It could possibly relaxation for effectively past 5 minutes as a result of the flesh warms up as soon as positioned within the sizzling sauce.

2. pink curry sauce

The important thing step right here is to prepare dinner off the curry paste, whether or not utilizing do-it-yourself or retailer purchased. It makes a large distinction to enhance flavour. Should you simply stir it into liquid, the flavour is so unimpressive!

Cook dinner off curry paste – Sauté the curry paste with the ginger and garlic for 4 to five minutes over medium warmth. The curry paste will probably be fairly moist at first however will dry out and deepen in color which improves the flavour of the curry sauce.
Sauce – Add the hen inventory first and simmer to cut back by half. Then add the coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar and lime leaves (crush in palms to launch flavour). Stir to mix then simmer for two minutes.

Inexperienced beans (or different veg) – Add the beans and simmer for 3 minutes till they’re nearly tender. (If utilizing different greens, add them in based mostly on the prepare dinner time).
Lychees or pineapples – Then stir the lychees or pineapple in and simmer for simply 1 minute simply to heat it although relatively than prepare dinner it till comfortable. And simply earlier than serving, stir the Thai Basil leaves in (it wilts shortly and, like common basil, darkens in color with extended publicity to warmth).

Plating up – Although we’re not aiming for tremendous crispy duck pores and skin on this dish, I nonetheless wish to serve it with a lot of the pores and skin above the sauce line as a result of it will get much less soggy than stirring it although. Visible objective as effectively.

So I put a little bit of sauce within the base of a serving bowl then lay the duck breast on high, fanning the slices out barely to show the beautiful pink flesh. Then I spoon the remainder of the curry sauce, lychees and so forth across the duck breast. Or, I gently place the sliced duck into the pan with the sauce in it, as pictured beneath.
Garnishes and serve! As with many South East Asian dishes, garnishes not solely add beautiful color but additionally additional flavour! Further Thai basil, coriander/cilantro and slices of pink chilli.

Have a look at it. It’s so stunning! A riot of color, the unmissable pearly balls for lychees, the golden duck pores and skin peeking out above the pink coconut curry sauce, and the trace of pink flesh on present which screams “I’m so tender and juicy, no dry duck right here!!”.

Take it to the desk with pleasure together with jasmine rice that you simply steamed earlier (regardless of a sure meals blogger not together with that instruction as step 1). Gesture grandly* and stand again for a second to provide your viewers time to reward and lavish you with exclamations of appreciation earlier than graciously permitting folks to dig in! – Nagi x

* If you’re extra mature than me, you possibly can skip this half.

PS See FAQ beneath for advised sides to finish a Thai menu!

FAQ – Thai Pink Duck Curry

Watch the best way to make it

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Thai Pink Duck Curry – RecipeTin Eats

Thai pink duck curry