Best Sous Vide Duck Breast Recipe

Duck breast is just ideal for sous vide cooking as it is best cooked medium rare. You will need to cook the duck breast sous vide for around three hours at a temperature of 135°F (57°C). To really add the icing on the cake, go for Duck A L’Orange for that perfect French cuisine.

When you cook your duck breast at 135°F for at least 3 hours you will find that the fat under the skin will become soft, and render out and the proteins contained within it will start to set. This will enable you to make it nice and crisp after cooking. Prior to cooking your duck breasts, let them sit in the fridge overnight uncovered so that some of the moisture can evaporate.

Equipment

• Sous Vide Machine – our favorite right now is the Anova or the Joule.
• Container – not necessary, but nice to have for bigger cuts of meat. We recommend the Lipavi as it is large and sturdy. You can also use a pot.
• Vacuum sealer and bags, or a freezer Ziploc bag. If you only have a Ziploc make sure to check our our article on the water displacement method. You can find our favorite vacuum sealers here – 5 Best Sous Vide Vacuum Sealers (Reviews Updated 2021)

Best Sous Vide Duck Breast Recipe

Because the duck skin is a bit thicker you can produce a gentle crisping effect after your duck breast sous vide cooking. There is no need for very high heat searing with a torch like you would do with a steak that has been cooked sous vide. The duck skin is a very good insulator, and you will find that the breast meat will not change color. What you will get is very evenly cooked meat that is very tender and crisp.

Ingredients

If you are cooking Duck A L’Orange for two people then it is recommended that you use the following ingredients:

• Two duck breasts (6 ounces each)
• The juice and the zest of an orange
• A shallot that has been peeled and cut into quarters
• 4 garlic cloves that have been crushed
• 4 sprigs of thyme
• Unsalted butter sliced into pieces
• Black peppercorns
• Duck stock
• Sherry vinegar
• Salt
• Ground black pepper

Sous Vide Duck Breast Cooking Times, Temperature, and Preparation

The day prior to cooking it is recommended that you place the duck breasts on a plate lined with a paper towel, and leave them in the fridge all night.

Set up your best sous vide machine and fill the water bath. Set the sous vide cooker or immersion circulator to 135°F (57°C) and heat the water to this temperature.

Now you want to season the duck breasts with salt, and use sous vide bags or zip lock bags to place the breasts in. Add orange juice and zest, shallot, thyme, garlic and black peppercorns to the bag before you seal it. Now place the bags into the heated water bath, and set the timer on your suvee cooker (or external timer) for at least 3 hours.

After Sous Vide Cooking Your Duck Breasts

Once the cooking time is up you will need to remove the bags from the water bath. Take the duck breasts out of the bags, and then use paper towels to pat them dry. Now you want to make light criss-cross patterns on the skin with a knife, but be careful not to dig into the meat.

Use a sous vide torch or skillet on medium to high heat, and place the duck breasts with the skin side down in the skillet. You can sear for up to 5 minutes according to your taste. Transfer to a cutting board and cover.

Get rid of the rendered duck fat and add vinegar to the skillet and simmer. Add the stock from the cooking bags and bring this to a simmer. Now add the butter and take the skillet off of the heat. Add salt and pepper if required.

All you have to do now is slice the duck breasts and add the orange sauce to serve.

Want to try another sous vide duck recipe?

Duck Breast with Asparagus Sous Vide

Here’s one of the ways you can prepare a duck breast and veggies on your next meal time.

Ingredients:

• Duck Breast
• Salt
• Pepper
• Paprika
• Oil
• Bundle of Asparagus

Directions:

1. Preheat the sous vide machine at 186°
2. Wash the asparagus clean.
3. Trim the end part of the asparagus about an inch long.
4. Place the asparagus inside the pouch before adding a little amount of oil in it.
5. Use a vacuum sealer to seal the asparagus inside the plastic pouch.
6. Set the asparagus pouch aside.
7. Take the duck breast and pat it dry.
8. Make a few shallow cuts on the skin side of the duck breast so it can efficiently absorb the seasonings while being cooked in a sous vide machine.
9. Dry rub the duck breast with salt, pepper, and paprika.
10. Place the duck breast inside a sous vide bag. If you want to use a zip lock bag, make sure that the water temperature is less than 158°F before plunging the duck breast pouch into the sous vide machine.
11. Add a little amount of oil.
12. Use a vacuum sealer to remove the air inside the pouch and to seal it at the same time.
13. Place the asparagus in the sous vide machine and wait for 3-4 minutes until it gets to cook.
14. Add two cups of tap water in the machine to stop the asparagus from cooking and to drop the temperature.
15. Set the temperature down to 137°F
16. Place the pouch of the duck breast inside the sous vide machine along with the asparagus pouch.
17. Let the duck breast cook for at least 1 hour.
18. Remove the duck breast and the asparagus pouch out of the sous vide machine.
19. Remove the asparagus out of its pouch and plunge it immediately into iced water for few seconds, just to stop it from further cooking.
20. Dry the asparagus and put some salt and pepper.
21. Remove the duck breast in its pouch and quickly sear it in a frying pan or a cast iron.
22. Place the duck breast and the asparagus on a serving plate beautifully.

Enjoy!