L’Agenda Gourmand du Château Phelan Ségur – July 2016

To be enjoyed with Château Phelan Ségur 2009.

2 good duck magrets from the Landes (500g)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
½ L chicken stock
¼ L duck jus
200G Morello cherries
50G sugar
50G butter

Breasts :
Partly remove the fat from the upper side of the magret and score the remaining fat in squares; de-vein and keep cool.
Prepare the fire by burning the dried vine shoots. Fire the grill well, make good embers, then grill the magrets on the fat side and season (careful, the fat can quickly catch fire and burn the meat). Turn the breasts regularly until they are a nice caramelised brown on the outside but still rare at the centre. Keep hot.

Sauce :
Stalk and stone the cherries, place them in a pan with the butter and brown lightly. Add the sugar and caramelise; add the chicken stock and reduce to dry; add the duck jus and reduce by a quarter. Check the seasoning, then the thickness.

Example side dish :
Clean a small fennel bulb, 4 spring onions, 4 green asparagus spears, 1 pepper, 4 carrots with tops, a few girolle mushrooms and some snow peas.
Cut the vegetables into strips then fry everything with a good knob of butter. The vegetables should remain crunchy and well coated with butter (indulgent). Season.

Presentation :
Arrange the vegetables at the top of the plate. The breasts will have rested, so they will not lose their juices on slicing; slice them in 4 and place 2 pieces on each plate. Sauce generously and serve the rest of the sauce in a bowl.