Confit duck with star anise cherry sauce

French 20 Mins Prep · 120 Mins Cook

1. Place the duck legs, skin-side down, in a deep tray.
2. Peel and slice the garlic. Zest one orange.
3. Combine the sliced garlic, zest of 1 orange, pepper, salt, thyme and bay leaves then spread over the duck leg quarters. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 120°C (lowest gas mark).
5. Place the duck fat in a deep roasting dish and warm through.
6. Wash off the salt rub from the duck leg quarters and pat dry before placing them in the warm fat. Cover with aluminium foil and roast in the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes. To check if the duck is ready, try twisting the thigh bone; if it comes away easily the duck is ready.
7. Remove the quarters from the fat and allow to cool slightly, if using immediately. Remove the thigh bones from the meat and try to ensure that the meat stays in one large piece. French-trim the drumstick end so that it looks neat, then tuck in the meat and trim off any loose ends.
8. When ready to serve, heat a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the duck leg quarters, skin-side down. Once golden and crisp, turn over and warm through for a couple of minutes. Alternatively, place in a hot oven for 5 minutes. You can also seal them in bags of two, with some fat and freeze the confit of duck.
9. To make the cherry sauce, zest and juice the other orange. Place the juice, zest, star anise, ginger, soya sauce, vinegar and cherries (reserving 2 tablespoons of the juice from the tin) in a medium-sized saucepan placed over a high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
10. In a small bowl or glass, combine the reserved cherry juice with the corn flour then stir into the sauce. Cook for a further minute until the sauce thickens.
11. Serve the duck leg quarter with the cherry sauce on the side. 

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