L’Orange Sauce

L’Orange sauce is a classical French sauce that is commonly found in the dish, duck a l’Orange. L’orange sauce is a sauce made from a combination of sugar, orange juice, zest, and stock, typically used to enhance the flavor of meats such as pork or duck. It may also include other ingredients such as shallots, butter, and heavy cream.

Because it is both sweet and acidic, it goes great with many meats including a rich duck or pork, and chicken. Here I served it with duck breast, and it was delicious!

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup of sugar
• fresh juice from 2 oranges
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup chicken or duck stock
• 1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch
• orange peel, thinly sliced

Preparation:

STEP 1.

In a stainless steel pot over low heat, add the sugar and slowly melt. Stir with a rubber spatula once it starts to caramelize. Once it is a dark caramel color, stir in the orange juice, white wine vinegar, stock, and season with salt. Simmer 10 minutes to reduce and develop flavor.

STEP 2.

To thicken, whisk together 1 tbsp of arrowroot and 1 tbsp of water in a small bowl to create a slurry. While simmering slowly add the slurry while whisking until desired thickness is reached. It should be thick enough to coat the back of the spoon without moving. If it is too thick, add a little bit of water, if it is too thin, add more of the slurry.

STEP 3.

For the orange peel garnish, boil water and blanch the sliced peels for one minute. This takes away the bitter flavor. Remove from the water.

STEP 4.

Serve the sauce with the meat and garnish with the orange peels.