Roast Duck with Spinach Spaetzle and Sauerkraut
This roast duck from Roman Paulus is a treat for any fan of Czech cuisine. The juicy meat, fragrant with caraway and beer, is served with spinach spaetzle, sauerkraut and crispy fried onion rings. The sauce made from the roasting juices and bones is full of flavour and comes on the side.
Prep: 2 h 30 min
Servings: 4
Energy: 557 kcal per serving
Method
01.
Stuff the duck with onion cut into wedges, season it well with salt all over (you can rub the salt into the meat) and sprinkle with caraway. Pour over the beer and cover with a lid to keep it juicy. Roast in an oven preheated to 180 °C for about 2 hours. Baste the duck with the drippings during roasting. After 1.5 hours, remove the lid and finish roasting. Once roasted, carve the breast and leg portions, which you reheat under the grill until crispy before serving. Pick the meat remaining on the carcass and set aside. Cut the carcass into smaller pieces with scissors.
02.
In the duck lard obtained after roasting the duck, fry the onion cut into strips. Add the chopped bones including the onion from the roasted duck and fry again. Sprinkle with flour and pour over the beer. Set aside about a cup of the drippings for the side dish, pour the rest into a pot with the sauce and let it simmer (add water if needed). After simmering, strain and reduce to the desired thickness and flavour.
03.
Mix the coarse flour, eggs, a pinch of salt and the thawed spinach purée into a dough. Press it through a spaetzle sieve into boiling salted water, cook for 3–4 minutes and transfer to a bowl.
04.
In a heated pan with duck lard, fry the onion cut into strips. Add the duck meat picked from the carcass and the sauerkraut, pour over the duck drippings, add the spaetzle and stir.
05.
Cut the onion into rings, coat in a mixture of plain flour and ground paprika and fry in heated oil until golden brown.
06.
Serve the reheated duck portions with the spinach spaetzle and sauerkraut, and garnish with the Vienna-style onions. Serve the sauce separately in a gravy boat.
