Duck, Cherry Tomato, and Blue Cheese Salad

Recipe:

Ingredient Notes

• Duck Fillet: You’ll need duck breast fillet with the skin on. Unfortunately, other duck cuts won’t work the same way for this recipe. However, you can create a delicious variation of this salad using roasted or pan-fried beef tenderloin, roast beef, or steak instead. It will be a different, but equally tasty, experience.
• Cherry Tomatoes: This is a recipe where cherry tomatoes are essential. Swapping them for a large tomato just won’t work, as diced larger tomatoes won’t hold up to the light cooking process. So, stick to cherry tomatoes – any shape or color is fine, as long as they’re ripe.
• Blue Cheese: Feel free to use your favorite blue cheese here, whether it’s Gorgonzola, Roquefort, Danish Blue, or any other variety. If you’re not a fan of blue cheese’s strong flavor and aroma, you can substitute it with feta cheese. Just keep in mind it will result in a different flavor profile for the salad.
• Olive Oil: The dressing is typically made with extra virgin olive oil. If you prefer, you can use a refined oil instead, such as sunflower, regular olive, canola, or grapeseed oil. However, be aware that using refined oil will result in a less intense flavor for the dressing.
• Vinegar: You’ll need a 3-6% acidity vinegar for the dressing. Any light-colored vinegar will work well, such as apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, or sherry vinegar. A standard 9% distilled white vinegar will be too sharp.
• Mustard: You can use either regular table mustard or Dijon mustard in this recipe. Honey mustard is another great option if you prefer a sweeter note.
• Honey: It’s best to use a mild-flavored honey for the dressing, such as acacia or linden honey. Stronger-flavored honeys like buckwheat or chestnut are better saved for other uses.
• Lettuce Mix: For this salad, I used a mix of iceberg, radicchio, frisée, and lamb’s lettuce (Mâche). However, any other leafy greens will work, including romaine, Lollo Bionda, baby spinach, and more. For an extra touch of peppery flavor, you can add a bit of arugula to your mix.
• Basil: Fresh basil adds a lovely aroma and a subtle flavor accent to the gently cooked tomatoes. If fresh basil isn’t available, you can use 1/4 teaspoon of dried basil instead.
• Garlic: For this recipe, it’s best to use fresh garlic.
• Nuts: Nuts provide a wonderful crunchy texture to the salad. I used pistachios, but walnuts, pecans, toasted hazelnuts, and almonds also pair excellently with the other ingredients.

Let’s start cooking.

Score the duck fillet skin with shallow cuts.

Season with salt and pepper. Place in a dry, cold skillet over high heat.

Cook for 5-6 minutes on one side, then 3 minutes on the other side. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (355°F) for 7-10 minutes. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes.

Halve the cherry tomatoes.

Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a frying pan over high heat. Add the cherry tomatoes and sauté, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the finely chopped garlic, basil, vinegar, and sugar. Sauté for another 30 seconds.

Transfer to a plate.

To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk with a fork until emulsified.

Set aside half of the dressing. Toss the salad leaves with the remaining dressing.

Cut the duck fillet into thin slices. Crumble the cheese.

Arrange the dressed salad leaves, duck slices, cherry tomatoes, and crumbled cheese on plates. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and sprinkle with chopped nuts.

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Enjoy!

This Duck, Cherry Tomato, and Blue Cheese Salad recipe was checked, prepared and approved by Chef Tatyana Nazaruk - author of FlavorIt.com.
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