Christmas day duck

iVillage food and drink expert Terry Farris, offers up a delicious alternative to Turkey for your Christmas day roast.

Roast duck can be wonderfully tasty but you don't get as much meat per size as you would on a turkey - a 2kg duck will only serve four people, so depending on how many you are serving for Christmas you may need to buy several. (Ducks are only available in limited sizes so you can't just buy a bigger size duck - as you would a turkey - to feed more people). You could also consider duck breasts - that way you have more control over how many to buy and frankly, they are easier to deal with. They're good with all kinds of sauces, from apple to cranberry.

Roast Duck

Ingredients
1.8-2kg (4-4.5lbs) duck
salt and black pepper
1/2 an onion
1/2 an orange
1 teaspoon flour
300ml duck or strong chicken stock

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Wipe the duck clean inside and out. Season the cavity well with salt and pepper. Place the onion and orange inside the duck then prick the skin all over and sprinkle with a little more salt. Place the duck upside down on a rack in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes. Pour off the fat, turn the duck over and continue roasting for about another hour or until there are no pink juices running from the inside - the skin should also be crispy. Cook longer if necessary, depending on size. Tip the cooking juices into a bowl and put aside to use later. Keep the duck warm but do not cover with foil or it will spoil the crispy skin.

For the gravy

Heat one tablespoon of the duck fat in a pan and stir in the flour; cook gently for one to two minutes until coloured. Add the duck juices, and the stock, and stir and simmer for two minutes - serve as gravy.

You could also serve with apple or cranberry sauce.

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