Text 19468, 125 rader
Skriven 2011-12-27 09:18:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av NANCY BACKUS
Ärende: cures 411
=================
 NB> My chronic GERD is usually kept under control with prescription
 NB> Prilosec, but before I had started that, I was using lots of
 NB> Rolaids... I don't think they made it worse, but they didn't control
 NB> for very long. A very dry white wine before eating helped some too,
 NB> back then... 

Sounds like the same effect claimed by the vinegar people.
A mild acid - wonder why that does the trick.

 NB> Dunno about the barium sulfate, I'd expect that to do things to the
 NB> lower end... But the fat and beer are likely culprits (in great
 NB> quantity, especially), as is the wrongly-tilted bed.

I solved the problem, as it turns out, quite easily. Two pillows.
Usually I use only one and tend to fall off the side at least
once a night. As long as I stayed centered on two pillows, I was
fine. Last night, I was okay with staying on the fat part of one
pillow, so my head stayed just higher than my stomach. Of course,
something totally else woke me up, and the old brain started
firing randomly, and I ended up doing the following an undisciplined
train of thought all over the Internet (we used to do that kind of
thing with dictionaries and encyclopedias, you remember if you are
anything like I was), reading top ten lists on livescience.com
(a terrible site, and much of the stuff is total bullcrap), and so
on. Ended up spending the unprofitable but amusing wee hours reading
about hoaxes such as manbeef.com (you have to go on an archive site
to find the content now) and others even sillier.

Duck a l'orange (whole duck) with crispy fat-roasted potatoes
Cat: French, revisionist
Serves: 4

1 duck approx 2kg/4lb, giblets removed
Good roasting potatoes, peeled, enough for everyone
Greens of choice (cook to your liking)
Soy sauce (optional)
Orange marmalade, a spoonful (optional)
4 oranges, juice of
1 c white wine that you like
Salt

Preheat oven to 125C (approx 250F).

Get a toothpick or other precision skewer and prick the
duck's skin all over but NOT STICKING THE SKEWER STRAIGHT
IN - go almost parallel with the skin, through it and
into the fat but not the flesh. This will let the fat
drain out during cooking, which is crucial. Remove any
fat around the duck's openings - this may already have
been done.

Rub the duck all over with good salt. Then lay it in a
baking tray breasts-down. Yes, breasts-down.

Give the duck 3 hr in the oven, checking every hour or
so that the fat is still draining OK (if not, re-prick).
If blood leaks out into the fat, don't try to pour it
off or otherwise disturb it. Just let it congeal/cook
in the fat and then fish it out as a lump. This will
keep your fat and juices clean for later use.

When the duck's had 2 hours, boil your peeled potatoes
until they are on the brink of falling apart, then drain
them. You could scratch them up with a fork before
boiling if super-keen.

After the duck's had 3 hours, drain off the fat into a
heat-safe container: preferably one of those jugs used
to separate fat and juices, and preferably see-through.
Turn the oven up to 180C (350F) Return the duck to the
pan, breasts UPWARDS this time, and pop it back in the
oven for 45 minutes.

Separate the fat and juices, reserving both. Use your
special jug, or get a turkey baster and suck the juices
from under the fat. Or just pour off the fat carefully.

Get your potatoes in an oven tray that's deep enough
and drizzle the fat over them. Shake them around to
coat. If you're out of trays or oven space, you may
have to fit them in with the duck. Put the potatoes in
the oven - after about 30 minutes give them another
basting and turn them over.

Once that 45 minutes is over, get the duck out - it
should be looking brown and crisp. Check for the usual
signs of uncookedness (highly unlikely unless you've
messed up the temperatures). Cover the duck with foil
and rest it on a plate. Give the potatoes more time if
they don't look golden-brown enough for you.

Now for the sauce. In a saucepan combine the duck juices
(not the fat), orange juice and white wine. The optional
bits: marmalade adds a bit of tartness, and soy sauce will
darken the sauce and make it a bit more salty. Bear in
mind that you salted the duck before cooking, and this
will come through in the juices. I'd lean towards leaving
the soy sauce out.

Simmer the sauce fairly rapidly until it reduces and
becomes a bit syrupy. Do this to your liking. While
reducing, don't panic about the duck and potatoes going
cold - they'll be fine. You could pop them back in the
switched off but still-warm oven if you are that worried
or have messed up the sauce and need to buy time.

Get your greens going - if you've chosen broccoli, snow
peas, asparagus etc. they won't take long.

Carve up the duck to your liking - look at all that
lovely, rich, brown meat. It's nice to separate off the
joints, and remove the breasts whole then slice them up
retaining a bit of skin on each slice. Adorn each plate
with a selection of cuts. Add the lovely golden-brown
potatoes and your greens. We served the orange sauce in a
small teapot and let the guests pour it over themselves.
[M's note: do they eat themselves, as well?]

As devised by Waz based on Joy of Cooking
crashtestkitchen.com


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