This honey butter mallard recipe is very versatile. It’s a one-pan recipe and a great way to introduce someone to duck for the first time. Plus, it’s VERY flexible, depending on your taste preferences and what you have on hand in your kitchen.

Ingredients:

4 mallard duck breasts
1 large onion
1 poblano pepper
1/2 stick butter, divided
1 tube ginger paste
1 Tbs honey
5-10 cloves of garlic
~1 Tbs sesame oil
2 Tbs soy sauce
cilantro
salt
sweet & seasoning (Victoria Taylor’s Honey Aleppo Pepper)

Instructions:

• Clean up duck breasts to make sure you don’t have any feathers, bone, or shot.
• Chop your veggies.
• Chop cilantro.
• Peel the garlic cloves. Chop 6 of them finely, add a generous squirt of the ginger paste (or chop some fresh ginger) and a bit of salt. Mash the ingredients together to make a garlic/ginger paste. Slice the rest of the garlic thinly so it will cook quickly.

NOTE: Have everything you need close to the cooking area as the cooking can go fairly quickly once started.

• Drizzle a small amount of cooking oil in the pan. Set heat to high to raise the oil temperature.
• Add meat to pan to get a good sear. Add 2 Tbs of butter and use the liquid to baste the breasts a bit while they cook.
• Flip breasts once you have a good sear and continue to cook until about halfway to your desired doneness.

NOTE: Fowl should be cooked to an internal temperature of 130°.

• Lower heat from high to a medium/high and add onions, along with the remaining 2 Tbs butter and a generous squeeze of the ginger paste tube and mix.
• Add in peppers and the ginger/garlic paste. Cook for a few minutes.
• Add in the soy sauce and honey and mix it with the contents of the pan. It will reduce a bit.
• Add sliced garlic.
• Turn down the heat to medium until garlic is cooked.
• Plate with vegetables and sauce. Garnish with the chopped cilantro and sprinkle with a little sweet and spicy seasoning.