(The Tucci Cookbook, page 192)
Roast Duck With Fresh Figs
(The Tucci Cookbook, page 296)
Haricots Verts With Shallots And Cherry Tomatoes
(The Tucci Table, page 23)
... and now for something completely different.
Not only were we going to prepare duck (using port wine and figs) for the first time, but we would also be blanching haricots verts and making Arborio rice too. This would be an interesting and challenging effort!!
To add some additional excitement and motivation, a major thunderstorm was predicted to arrive early evening and potentially affect our preparations. Tennessee weather, however, can be very capricious, so we continued with our plans and hoped for the best.
The search for fresh duck was as difficult as for rabbit. We called the local Whole Foods and they told us that demand for duck had declined to the point that they no longer carried it. Nor did The Butcher Block in Franklin. Fresh Market in Brentwood had a single two-pound freezer-burned duck buried in their case. Our recipe called for a four pound duck. We kept looking.
Tom eventually contacted Porter Road Butcher on Nashville's east side, and they confirmed that they had two frozen whole ducks in stock. One was 4.2 pounds. We asked them to hold it for us until the following morning, when Tom would pick it up.
Porter Road Butcher was located in a converted gas station. They unlocked the door at 10 am and once inside, Tom discovered a nice selection of meats and cheeses, similar to other butcher shops we had recently visited. In addition, however, the shop carried a very large inventory of prepared ’stocks’ of all types … chicken, beef, pork, lamb, fish, and lobster. This gave the impression that they might be a resource for the plethora of local restaurants in East Nashville. Our duck was pulled from the freezer and rung up … at forty dollars for a four-pound specimen, we were paying ten dollars a pound!
We needed to make one last stop at the local wine shop (The Wine Chap) for a bottle of port. While there, we picked up a few other bottles of wine to restock our inventory. Our good friend and neighbor, Keith (one of the best wine authorities we know), assisted with our selections. We finally had everything we needed and were ready to begin cooking.
Of the the three menu items, the duck would take (by far) the greatest amount of time to prepare. Almost three hours. We had thawed it overnight in the refrigerator, rinsed and cleaned it, patted it dry, and stuffed it with rosemary, sage, crushed garlic, and onion.
The next step was to use a large sauté pan to sear it with olive oil before putting it in the oven. Our pan was too small for the task, requiring Tom to frequently turn the bird as it browned, often holding it vertically or on its side to sear evenly. During this process, hot grease was flying everywhere, including onto Tom's hands and forearms. We got the job done, and the duck looked perfect, but it was not easy.
We placed 'Daffy' in the oven at 400 degrees in a large roasting pan. Over the next ninety minutes, we would also add chopped carrots, celery, garlic, rosemary, and thyme.
As the main course roasted, Michelle got to work, dicing onions, garlic, and fresh spices for the other two dishes. She had everything 'mise en place' (in its place) for our next recipes.
We next turned our attention to the rice. Into a large pan of boiling water we measured two cups of Arborio rice and let it cook for fifteen minutes.
Arborio rice is a short-grained Italian rice. It has a unique pearly-white, or chalky, character that gives it a certain 'bite' when used in making risotto or rice pudding. Because it is usually milled less than other rice, it maintains a greater starch content, thus giving it a creamy consistency when cooked properly (not an easy task). The preferred method is to cook it al dente, keeping it slightly firm to the bite.
Outside, the thunderstorm had miraculously bypassed us. Inside, it was the calm before the storm, as we brushed honey onto the duck and stirred the rice as it simmered. The final fifteen minutes would be a hurricane of activity as we would bring the preparation of the meal to its conclusion.
What are haricots verts? Well, the direct French translation is 'green beans' but they are actually slightly different than domestic green beans. They are longer, more slender, and with no (or fewer) strings. Gourmands believe that they are uniquely tender and have greater complexity on the palate. Thus justifying a higher price, of course.
We were unable to find fresh haricot verts, but Tam obtained a bag of flash-frozen ones that we hoped would work.
This green bean recipe was categorized in Tucci's cookbook not as a side vegetable serving, but as a salad. The intent, therefore, is to keep the beans as raw as possible and not overcook them. In fact, he described it as 'barely' cooking them. This would be accomplished by quickly blanching them.
Having never blanched anything before, we needed to research the purpose and best methods to do it.
We were ready!!
In the meantime, the bottle of port was opened prematurely, and everybody was diving in to have a quick taste ... except Dan, of course ... who decanted his share into a whiskey snifter and let it rest for an hour before imbibing.
Tom blanched the haricots verts in ice water (after boiling them for a quick two minutes) while Michelle used a mortar and pestle to mix mustard, shallots, garlic, vinegar, salt and pepper into an emulsion that she immediately poured over the cooled beans and cherry tomatoes.
With this meal, like several others we had prepared before, the closer we were to finishing, the faster and more accelerated everything became. By the time we were plating the whole thing up, it seemed like we were both operating in hyperdrive.
If there is a lesson to be learned, it might be to maintain composure during those closing moments. We always tend to forget something in the rush (in this case, a last dribble of olive oil and sprinkle of parsley on the rice).
Looking over our shoulders as we brought the incredible meal to the table, we could see towering stacks of dirty utensils, pots, pans, strainers, and towels covering every inch of countertop ... they were the spoils of another tremendous victory!!
The roast duck, carved ever so meticulously by Dan, was juicy and tender. The sweet, purplish port wine-fig topping was perfectly offset by the sage and parmesan-infused al dente rice. All of it was balanced by the clean French green bean salad with simple vinaigrette.
Keith's wine selection, Familongue Pays D'Herault Cuvée Des Vignals Mont Baudile Cinsault, 2015, was the coup de grace. The fruit-forward, medium-bodied vintage complemented the meal in every way. It was a terrific choice!!
This was yet another great learning experience in our culinary education.