Duck Ham Part Deux

Seems like this recipe has drummed up some interest and today was the best part - the tasting.  Picking up where I left off once the duck has been in the salt for two days remove and rinse well under cold water then pat dry with kitchen paper and hang individually in muslin bags in the fridge for 14 days, turning halfway through and making sure that air can circulate around the meat at all times.  After these 14 days the meat will have darkened and firmed up a lot and you have a beautiful homemade usable product.

I've gone for a simple salad of cured duck ham, endive and fig with a honey mustard dressing.  To make you'll need;

• Thinly sliced home cured duck ham
• Endive
• 1 fig per person - quartered. 

And for the dressing;

• 1.5 tbsp extra virgin rapeseed oil
• 0.75 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 0.5 tsp english mustard (dijon if you want to take some heat out)
• 1 tsp runny honey
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mix the dressing ingredients together and dress the endive and fig, place on the plate. I sliced the duck and layered it and then trimmed the edges to tidy it up (and kept the trimmings for a snack whilst watching the football tomorrow!) and below you end up with a smart salad perfect for this timely summer weather.

Noticed that some guy called Raymond Blanc also decided to make duck ham on TV this week...copycat.  Here's the link to his version that I may try next;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/duck_ham_31997

Give it a go, its easy to do and gives you a really impressive result.