Pekin duck sounds like a fancy dish, but it’s actually just as easy to prepare as chicken. Also known as Long Island duck, Pekin is the most common duck meat served in the U.S. This recipe uses a citrus-ginger sauce to flavor the duck. It’s a wonderful alternative to turkey or ham at holiday meals.

Ingredients

  • 2 5-pound pekin ducks
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 2 11 ounce cans mandarin segments
  • 4 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 6 cups light chicken stock, divided
  • 1 cup orange juice
  • 4 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 4 teaspoons ginger, grated
  • 2 tablespoons sugar

Instructions

  1. To prepare the ducks rub them inside and out with a mixture of 2 tablespoons of Kosher salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper. Place the ducks breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan and loosely cover them with foil to prevent them from browning too quickly. Cook in a preheated 350 degree F oven for about 2 hours. After ninety minutes of cook time remove the foil.
  2. While the ducks are in the oven, you can prepare the citrus-ginger sauce. Drain one can of mandarins and place the fruit in a blender. Add the second can, both juice and fruit. Blend until smooth.
  3. In a small bowl, mix four tablespoons of cornstarch and four tablespoons of chicken stock until the cornstarch is dissolved.
  4. Pour the remaining chicken stock, the cornstarch mixture, one cup of orange juice and four tablespoons of lemon juice into a deep pot. Give that a good stir and add two tablespoons each of honey, soy sauce, and sugar, along with four teaspoons of grated ginger, and the mandarin puree.
  5. Stir the mixture over medium heat until the sauce boils and starts to thicken.
  6. When the ducks have about 40 minutes of cooking time left, remove them from the oven, use a set of tongs to tilt the ducks up to drain any juice that's gathered on the inside. Next, transfer them to a baking dish and pour the mandarin sauce over both of the ducks. Return to the 350 degree F oven and roast for the final 40 minutes.