We have the last 7 days of carnival ahead. One way to enjoy carnival in your menu could be duck. If duck, then with everything that belongs to it, that is, with cabbage and potato pancakes. We recommend consuming it over the weekend due to the risk of overeating :).
Roast duck with red cabbage and potato pancakes does not correspond to a rational diet, but if prepared only as an exceptional delicacy on special occasions, you should turn a blind eye.
It is available in various restaurants from autumn, but you can easily prepare it at home. It is much easier than it seems. The key is to have enough time. Nothing can be rushed in this case. The most important ingredient is, of course, quality meat, which you can salt well from all sides, even inside, a day in advance. The next day, wash it again and salt again.
The rested and aged duck is then placed in a suitable roasting pan, which is closed during roasting. The duck should be moistened with a little water or wine, you can sprinkle it with caraway or other herbs and spices, depending on your creativity. However, it is important to roast it slowly. Grandmothers used to say that you should roast the duck as many hours as it weighs in kilograms. That means a roughly two-kilogram duck should be roasted at 170 degrees Celsius for about 2 hours (or at a lower temperature but longer).
During roasting, the duck should be checked, basted with the fat it releases, and turned occasionally to roast evenly on all sides. At the end, it can be roasted open in the pan for about 10 minutes at 200 degrees to make the crust nicely crispy.
Fresh red cabbage is best with duck, but other variants can be chosen according to possibilities and taste. And if you do not dare to prepare potato pancakes or dumplings yourself, you can always serve ready-made dumplings from the store.
Our grandmothers managed to prepare a complete menu with soup and dessert easily; today's housewives usually do not spend so much time in the kitchen. On the other hand, homemade is homemade, and once a year such a challenge can be managed. You can spread the work over two days; cabbage is best on the second day anyway, and dumplings or pancakes can also be prepared in advance. Or call a team of helpers and make the whole preparation and consumption a pleasant family ritual. Work goes faster in good company, especially if it ends with tasty consumption.
