Duck is something I will never ever get bored with and I love it at this time of the year. For me it screams winter and Christmas, in fact I see these type of game dishes as the perfect prelude to the big game bird event in a few days time!

This recipe is earthy, hearty and warming….it’s also an incredibly easy dish to whizz together mid-week so no longer do you have to equate Duck with weekend treats but do make sure you source your duck from a local butcher or a reputable source supplier…you wont regret this!!

2 Barbary Duck Legs

1 tin of Borlotti beans – drained

1 tin of black eyed peas – drained

1 small red onion finely diced

2 cloves garlic

100 grams of smoked pancetta

2 tbs creme fraiche

200 mls good white wine

100mls chicken stock

Handful of chopped parsley

Salt flakes and cracked black pepper

Kick things off by seasoning the duck legs and lugging over a little olive or rape seed oil just to get things going in the oven. Add the legs to a snug roasting tray and sling into a pre-heated oven at 180c – the duck will take about 30-40minutes and you want golden, crispy and coming away from the bone so baste regularly.

As the duck cooks get on with the beans – sweat down the garlic, pancetta and onion in some oil for about 5 minutes then add the beans, stock and the wine. Reduce the heat to just a simmer then cover with a cartouche and leave to blip until nicely soften.

When the duck is done (30-40 minutes) the beans will be also, to finish the beans add the creme fraiche, mix it well with the beans until creamy, season to taste and finally sling in a big handful of chopped parsley.

Simply serve in a bowl with the crispy and succulent Barbary Duck leg.

Duck leg is a great place to start if you haven’t cooked duck before as it is almost impossible to get wrong!