Pan-Seared Duck Breast with Cherry-Port Reduction
A balanced dish featuring tender duck breast with a sweet-tart fruit sauce that complements the rich meat. This French-inspired chicken recipe, ready in about 30 minutes, pairs duck breast, cherry preserves, port wine for a weeknight-friendly dinner that comes together with one pan and minimal cleanup. Each serving lands at about 480 calories and feeds 2, so it slots cleanly into a weekly meal plan and pairs well with a quick salad or grain on the side. Tap "Plan a meal with the AI" below to drop this recipe into your week and send the ingredients straight to Instacart. Nutrition values are approximate, calculated from USDA FoodData Central (fdc.nal.usda.gov) — verify against ingredient labels for any health-driven dietary plan.
Ingredients
- 2 (6 oz) skin-on pieces duck breast
- 3 tbsp cherry preserves
- 1/4 cup port wine
- 1 medium, finely minced shallot
- 1 tsp leaves fresh thyme
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
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Equipment for this recipe
Tools this recipe's steps call for, with a link to each on Amazon.
Instructions
- Step 1: Pat duck breasts dry with paper towels and season both sides with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper.
- Step 2: Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a cold skillet over medium-high heat. Place duck skin-side down and cook without moving for 8 minutes until skin is golden and crisp.
- Step 3: Flip duck and cook 4 minutes for medium-rare; remove from skillet and rest on a plate.
- Step 4: Add 1/4 cup port wine and 3 tbsp cherry preserves to the skillet, scraping up browned bits. Add 1 minced shallot and 1 tsp thyme, simmering for 3 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Step 5: Slice duck breasts thinly and serve with 2 tbsp cherry-port sauce spooned over each portion.







