Easy Oven Roasted Duck Breast in a Honey Soy Marinade

This simple oven-roasted duck breast recipe is simple, yet impresses with its rich, sweet-sour flavor and its juicy texture. Cooking duck breast sounds and looks complicated, but in fact, this is a very easy recipe. A dish for a special occasion without making too much of a fuss. 

This recipe for Barbarie duck breast has been in my family for decades. My mother used to make this for Christmas Dinner in Germany. The flavors might be Asian-inspired (my mum came from the Philippines) but it pairs very well with traditional German side dishes such as red cabbage and apple and potato dumplings. This is our favorite Christmas duck breast recipe, and we would have it during the holidays at least once. 

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• The Moulard Duck Breast Recipe
• How to serve
• Side Dishes for Duck Breast 
• Storage Instructions
• More German Meat Dishes
• Recipe

The Moulard Duck Breast Recipe

What type of duck breast is best?

For this recipe in Germany, we generally use a "Moulard Duck Breast", or as it is known in Europe a "Barbary Duck Breast" (Barbarie Entenbrust in German). This type of duck is an especially strongly flavored meat and low in fat. The meat is very tender and is usually served pink. The texture of the meat is more "beefy" than that of chicken and is sometimes referred to as duck steak.

As the Moulard Duck Breast fillet on its own is very aromatic, the recipe calls for a simple marinade that complements and does not overpower the flavors.

Ingredients:

• 4 duck breasts (Moulard Duck breast or Barbar Duck Breast)
• honey
• soya sauce
• salt and pepper
• garlic cloves

How to make oven-roasted duck breast 

A perfect moulard duck breast fillet has crispy skin and pink-colored, tender juicy meat inside. The best way to achieve this is to first sear the duck breast skin side down in a hot skillet.  Then place it in the oven so it reaches its ideal internal temperature. A low oven temperature ensures that the duck gets a nice crispy crust in the oven, without the meat cooking too long and drying out. 

How to prepare moulard duck breast

To prepare the honey and soy marinade, add the honey, soya sauce, and minced garlic in a small bowl.

Rinse the duck breast under running water and then pat it dry with a kitchen towel. Then, with a sharp knife score the skin of the duck breast in a criss-cross pattern. This will allow the fat from the skin to be released for a nice and crispy crust. Be careful that you do not cut into any of the meat, as otherwise the meat juice can escape and the duck breast may become dry and tough. With a pastry brush (affiliate link), cover the duck breast in the marinade and leave it to rest for at least an hour (overnight in the fridge is also possible). 

Duck Breast Cooking Process 

Preheat your oven to 150°C/302°F. Place the breasts in the cold skillet skin side down. Adjust your stove to medium heat and fry until the duck skin is golden brown (this should take about 5 minutes) This ensures that the fat in the skin is released and will help you roast the duck skin crispy in the oven.  Then carefully flip the breast and fry it on the flesh side for another two minutes.

Roasting the Duck Breast in the Oven

Place the breasts skin side up in a roasting tray. Pour over the remaining marinade and roast in the preheated oven for another approximately 30-35 minutes, until the duck meat is cooked. The exact cooking time will depend on the size and thickness of the breast. Use a meat thermometer to check the exact internal temperature. An internal temperature of between 62 and 65 °C / 144 and 150°F should result in juicy, pink, and tender meat. At my house, we all like a different level of doneness, so we leave some breasts in for longer. 

How to serve

Leave the cooked duck breast to rest for 10 minutes before serving. Wrap them in some aluminum foil. This ensures that the meat juices do not escape all at once when you cut it. Before serving, cut the duck breast into slices and season with a dash of black pepper. 

Side Dishes for Duck Breast 

This roasted duck breast goes very well with potatoes, be it normal mashed potatoes, potato gratin, or potato dumplings. As a side, we always serve Red cabbage and Apple as it goes very well with the gamey meat. Other vegetable side dishes that go well with roasted duck are green beans (like our Speckbohnen), peas, carrots, and parsnips. 

Storage Instructions

Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to three days.

More German Meat Dishes

Recipe