Duck

A real special-occasion entrée. Rich Muscovy duck breasts, sold at specialty foods stores, are larger and meatier than others.

The restaurant takes its name from amuse-bouche, a small gift from the chef to "please the mouth." Chicken thighs make a convenient substitute for duck in this pasta dish.

All Southern cooks have their own ways of making gumbo. Our recipe contains neither okra nor filé powder, producing a thinner, lighter gumbo.

The business card from Tante Louise reads: "A very special restaurant"—and it truly is. This romantic spot has been going strong for 27 years. Owner Corbin Douglass is known for fulfilling all sorts of requests, from ensuring that guests are seated at their favorite table in front of the fireplace to presenting an engagement ring on the dessert cart. Chef Duy Pham changes the contemporary French menu seasonally. The following dish was inspired by roast Peking duck, a Sunday tradition in Pham's family.

"My husband and I discovered a restaurant called Abbie Lane when we were on vacation in Newport, Vermont," writes Beth D. Fisher of Middleton, Wisconsin. "He ordered the special—a duck breast with cherry sauce—and really enjoyed it. I would love to make this dish for him at home."

A refined version of a New Orleans classic. Ask the butcher to remove the backbone and quarter the duck.

Active time: 1 3/4 hr Start to finish: 2 1/2 hr

You can use good, strong chicken stock for this recipe instead of homemade duck stock — it won't be as rich, but it's better than not cooking the dish at all as it is heavenly!

Sautéeing duck foie gras is not hard to do, but be careful; otherwise, you'll end up with a puddle of very expensive melted fat.

Marinate the duck two days ahead.

(Suprêmes de Canette à la Coriandre, Endive Braisée, Sauce Aigre-Douce à l'Orange) See how to grate citrus.

The ultimate Danish holiday dish from chef Torben Jensen of Gråbrødre Torv 21 restaurant.

This impressive dish is served at Le Cirque 2000 in New York. Order two 5-pound fresh ducklings from a butcher. Ask the butcher to cut each duck into two boneless breasts, two leg pieces, and two thigh pieces. Reserve the carcasses for making the sauce. You will probably need to order the rendered duck fat as well.

Once esteemed as a preservation method, cooking and keeping duck in its rendered fat results in meltingly tender, moist, and extremely flavorful meat which can be used in a variety of simple preparations. Sear the duck legs in a hot skillet or shred the meat and add it to salads, or, perhaps best of all, make duck rillettes. Just remember the duck must be salted a day before you plan to cook it.

One of the dishes that introduced Americans to French food. This version calls for duck breasts and a simple reduction sauce.

The rare breeds of Rouen Clair and Duclair from Stone Church Farm (845-658-3243) are small, tender, and have a low fat content, which makes them preferable to commercially available birds. We recommend the aged ducks, which have a richer taste. Order them two weeks ahead to allow preparation and shipping from the farm and request that the necks be removed. Since this recipe calls for a fair amount of soy sauce, it is important to use a brand with well-balanced flavors (such as Kikkoman).