Jerusalem artichokes are the most incredible vegetable, as they have such a unique flavour. Slightly nutty and sweet with a crunchy outer.
They are actually the roots of the sunchoke, different to the sunflower but within the same family. They are not related to the globe artichoke and are not from Jerusalem.
Global Artichokes are from the thistle family, where you only eat the leaves and head before it flowers.
Jerusalem Artichokes are the lumpy brown root or tuber of the sunflower native to North America which have smaller flowers different to the larger sunflowers we are used to seeing.
Red wine braised duck with Jerusalem artichoke purée
Serves 4
- 2 duck breasts, skin on
- 2 brown onions, sliced
- 6 cloves garlic, smashed
- 350ml rich red wine
- 400gm can whole peeled tomatoes
- Small bunch fresh thyme
- 4 cups Jerusalem artichokes, washed and roughly chopped
- 1 cup milk
- Water to cover
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley
- 50gm good parmesan
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 180*C. Score skin of duck breasts with a crisscross pattern.
Season both sides of duck breasts with salt and pepper. Heat a large cast iron pan over med-high heat. Place duck (skin side down) cook until the skin starts to golden. Remove breasts from pan and tip half the fat into a jar or bowl.
In the remaining fat, sauté the onion and garlic until soft. Add red wine, tomatoes and thyme, bring to the boil and reduce by half. Add the duck breasts back into the pan, season well with salt and pepper. Place into the oven uncovered for 30 minutes.
While the duck is cooking, prepare the purée. Place the artichoke in a medium sized saucepan with milk and just cover with water along with a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the artichoke are tender.
Drain artichokes from pot, reserving the cooking liquid. Return artichokes to empty pot and mash with 2 tbsp butter. Gradually beat in the reserved cooking liquid until you’ve reached a smooth whip. Season to taste.
After 30 minutes, remove duck from oven, lightly cover and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
TO SERVE: Spoon purée onto warmed serving plates, slice the duck and serve over the top of the puree. Spoon over a generous amount of the red wine sauce, chopped Italian parsley and some shaved parmesan.