Duck Breast Prosciutto

Serrano ham is a traditional aspect of charcuterie in French cuisine. It is simply cured meat that is then cured and further matured by air drying, leaving a wonderful and intensely flavored butchery product. Thinly sliced ​​and served with a nice strong country-style mustard, dried fruit, and dark bread, it makes a great late-fall lunch or part of a late-fall dinner.

Most of the ham is made from pork. The recipe that follows is made with moulard duck breast. Moulard is a duck raised for foie gras, and its meat is typically tastier than domestic Pekin, although not as juicy as wild mallard.

The breast is the lobe or half breast of the moulard duck (each duck will have two breast or one full breast).

Prosciutto Moulard Magret

Salt / Spice Healing:

Proportion – This is an important part of any cured meat recipe. The proportion of salt is especially important, the proportion of spices and garlic that follows is less important. Weigh the duck breasts and salt very carefully.

Per pound of Magret: (that is, salt per weight duck meat)

.7 oz of salt per pound of duck breast

By Magret: (i.e. curing spices by joins duck breast)

10 juniper berries

½ bay leaf, crushed

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

10 black peppercorns

1 clove garlic

Grind to a medium-fine level of juniper, bay leaf, coriander, peppercorns and garlic in a mortar. Add salt and mix well.

Each Magret: Place a large square plastic wrap on the counter. Place Magret on plastic wrap and place ½ of the mixture on Magret, skin side, spreading to coat evenly. Turn over and repeat with the pulp side. Roll wrap tightly and seal edges and repeat until needed weekly. Cure in refrigeration for 24 hours.

Air-cured:

Clean cured meat, do not rinse. Place Magret on a large square of cheesecloth and wrap cheesecloth around the Magret, making sure the cheesecloth completely covers the meat. Wrap twine around Magret and secure Magret like a roast, leaving a 6 “piece of twine free at one end. Hang in a dry cooler at 38F for two weeks. Remove from cheesecloth, wrap in plastic wrap and cut into paper thin slices.On serving, freeze if necessary for fine cuts (freezing helps firm duck breast, making it easier to slice thin).