Orange and Cardamom Duck legs with Rice Pilaf

Delicately spiced aromatic dish of slow roasting duck legs with fragrant rice. An elegant subtly transformed classic combination of duck and orange.

1 tsp Allspice, organic
15+6 Green Cardamom pods, organic
1 Cinnamon quills, organic
6 duck legs
300 ml freshly squeezed orange juice
1 orange rind, removed with a peeler
55 gm caster sugar
100 gm slivered almonds, toasted
50 gm butter
1 onion, thinly sliced
400 gm basmati rice, rinsed
1 litre chicken stock

Preheat oven to 160C. Place duck in a roasting pan. In a saucepan combine juice, rind, sugar, 15 bruised cardamom pods, and crush the allspice in a pestle and mortar or grind in a spice grinder and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes or until sugar has dissolved and mixture has combined. Pour over duck legs, cover with foil and roast for 1 hour. Remove foil and roast, basting frequently, for another hour or until golden and sauce reduced. Carefully pour off fat and discard, reserving juices.

Meanwhile, for the rice pilaf, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat until foamy, add onion, 6 bruised cardamom pods and cinnamon sauté for 10-15 minutes or until onion is caramelised. Add drained basmati rice and ½ tsp allspice and stir to coat, add chicken stock and bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 12 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Divide pilaf among plates, top with duck legs and drizzle with pan juices. Scatter with toasted almonds.