Smoked duck with Nederburg Private Bin Cabernet Sauvignon
Lightly smoked duck breast with warm berries and a bean and tomato salad
(Serves four)
2 duck breasts
100g black- and blueberries (fresh or frozen)
50g plums
50ml brown stock
20g green beans
20g peas
75g cherry tomatoes
15g baby salad leaves
Briefly blanch the green beans and the peas before seasoning with salt, black
pepper and olive oil.
Smoke the duck breasts on a Weber braai or in a braai smoker. Finish the cooking
process in the oven. Allow to cool.
To make the berry sauce, just warm the berries through in the brown stock. Reduce
to coating consistency.
Slice the duck breast into thin slices and arrange on a plate.
Either serve the berry sauce drizzled over the slices or on the side.
Toss the salad leaves, beans, peas and tomatoes and serve alongside the duck
breast.
David Higgs manages to look cool, calm and collected in spite of intermittent
power failures and maintaining responsibility for Meerendal's multiple culinary
ventures of Wheatfields, the Deli, the Barn and Lawn and even a cooking school!
He roped in some expert palates in the form of Meerendal's GM Bennie Howard
and winemaker Karl Lambour to help him match the food to the wine.
The brains trust loved the fruit on the wine but noted the role the tannins
and wood played in the final assessment.
"We thought a lightly smoked duck breast would work really well. Yes, we
toyed with going the meaty route, which would have been more traditional, but
felt that something like either fillet or even lamb would have been too meaty
for the wine. The duck is quite full flavoured but still light - and it does
the wine justice."
Higgs cautions against using a commercially smoked duck breast, believing it
can be too powerfully smoky.
"The beauty of this dish is that it's really simple. You can do this at
home and it's not going to take you half a day to prepare. It really is quick
and easy. Just lightly smoke it in the Weber braai and finish it off in the
oven. If you have a smoker, even better - but the Weber will do the trick."
The black- and blueberries in the sauce again complement the fruit in the wine
but Higgs likes adding some plum to flesh it out and round off the dish.
He also points out that it's remarkably versatile. "If you want to, you
can substitute chicken breast which would also work well with the smoky notes
complementing the wine. Or a fillet for that matter..."
Wheatfields, Meerendal Wine Estate, Vissershok Road, Durbanville, Tel 021 979 1958.
