- • Duck breast 1
- • Duck leg 1
- • Duck fat 1 litre
- • Maldon salt 18g
- • Black peppercorn 5 crushed
- • Thyme 5 snipped
- • Garlic cloves 2
- • Hispy cabbage 1
- • Fine salt
- • Butter milk 1 litre
- • Plum 1
- • Moscatel vinegar
- • Celeriac 1
- • Butter 100g
- • 1 lemon
- • Chicken stock 200ml
- • Cider vinegar 20g
- • Honey 20g

George Farrugia
23rd October 2019
Duck breast, confit duck, carrot purée, hispi cabbage, plum
I love hunting, I love duck and I love British autumnal produce. This dish showcases all of these things; its richness is balanced out with the acidity of the fruit and fermented cabbage, the sweetness of the carrots and the nuttiness of the celeriac.
Ingredients
Method
• Duck breast;
o Score the fat, season with salt and pepper and render in a pan and quickly colour the other side and place skin side down in oven on 180 for 8-10 minutes.
o Finish with a drizzle of cider vinegar and honey and glaze.
• Roasted celeriac;
o Peel celeriac and oil lightly then season heavily and colour in pan until roasted
o Add butter until nutty in aroma and add squeeze of lemon juice and chicken stock and bake in oven on 150c basting every 10 minutes until can put knife through it
o Slice to desired shape
• Pickled plum;
o Slice plum thinly and marinade with vinegar until needed
• Fermented hispi cabbage;
o Rinse cabbage and cut into wedges, season quite liberally with salt and cover with butter milk until completely submerged
o Leave covered with air holes at room temperature for 4 days, then rinse and keep in fridge
• Duck confit;
o Season duck leg with maldon salt, thyme, pepper and garlic sliced and leave to marinade for a couple hours turn after 1 hour
o Rinse and cover with melted duck fat
o Cook in oven around 90c nice and gently until bone can pull out or meat breaks to touch
o Then remove bones and press between two trays until set and crisp when needed
• Carrot puree;
o Carrot sliced thinly, add to melted butter, lemon thyme, and sparkling water along with carrots and cook fast
o Add a little olive oil and cook until water evaporated
o Then blend and finish with whipping cream
The Staff Canteen has always been more than a website—it’s a community, built by and for hospitality. We share the wins, the challenges, the graft, and the inspiration that keeps kitchens alive.
We believe in staying open to everyone, but creating this content takes real resources. If you’ve ever found value here—whether it’s a recipe, an interview, or a laugh when you needed it most—consider giving just £3 to keep it going.
A little from you keeps this space free for all. Let’s keep lifting the industry, together.