• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Sous Vide
  • Air Fryer
  • Starbucks Copycat Drinks

IzzyCooking

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Sous Vide
  • Air Fryer
  • Starbucks Copycat Drinks
  • Let’s Connect!

    • Email
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Sous Vide
    • Air Fryer
    • Starbucks Copycat Drinks
  • Let’s Connect!

    • Email
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Dinner

    12/11/2020

    Crispy Skin Sous Vide Duck Breast

    • Share
    Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe

    These Sous Vide Duck Breasts have crispy skin on the outside and deeply rich and tender meat on the inside. Sous vide method will have you cooking like a pro, simply cook them at 135°F for 2 hours, and you’ll make the restaurant-quality medium-rare duck breasts at your own home!

    These Sous Vide Duck Breasts have crispy skin on the outside and deeply rich and tender meat on the inside. Sous vide method will have you cooking like a pro, making the restaurant-quality duck breasts at your own home! #SousVideDuckBreast #DuckBreast

    This foolproof sous vide recipe allows you to cook the meat to the precise temperature you set. It’s so succulent and rivals some of the best steaks. No more over-cooked chewy duck breast! Serve with red wine sauce on potatoes or tortilla tacos for a mouth-watering dinner, and impress your guest this holiday season!

    Table of Contents Show
    Why Sous Vide Duck Breast
    What You’ll Need for This Recipe
    How to Cook Sous Vide Duck Breast
    Tips for making tender and juicy duck breasts
    Temperature and Doneness
    How Long Does it Take to Sous Vide Duck Breast?
    Can You Serve Duck Breasts Medium Rare?
    How to serve sous vide duck breast?
    Crispy Skin Sous Vide Duck Breast Recipe

    Why Sous Vide Duck Breast

    Unlike chicken breast, the breast of the duck is a rich and dark meat, covered by a thick layer of fat. Low and slow is the preferred method to produce the most tender duck meat, making it an ideal candidate for sous vide cooking. 

    You may think the skin is too fat and thick, but searing after sous vide can turn the skin into a thin and crispy crust, so don’t trim it off.  Scoring the skin so that the fat will render away easily while cooking.

    What is sous vide? Sous vide means ‘under vacuum’ in French. It’s a low and slow cooking technique where the food is vacuum-sealed in a bag, and then cooked to a precise temperature in a warm water bath. Sous vide duck breast guarantees the perfect tender and juicy texture!

    What You’ll Need for This Recipe

    Actually you really need only duck breast and your favorite seasonings! Here are the ingredients I used for this recipe

    • Duck Breasts: fresh or frozen
    • Koshar Salt
    • Freshly Ground Black Pepper
    • Red Wine Sauce for Serving (optional)

    You’ll also need a Sous Vide Machine, zip-loc bags, and a large pot for this recipe.

    How to Cook Sous Vide Duck Breast

    1. Score duck breasts: Place the breast on a cutting board skin side up. Score the skin in a crosshatch pattern (as shown below), making sure not to cut through to the meat. Scoring helps to render the fat from the skin during cooking. 

    Closeup showing scoring the skin in a crosshatch pattern.

    2. Season the breast: Season the skin side with salt only (no pepper, as I like the clean look of the skin). Then flip the breast, and season the flesh side with salt and pepper.

    Season duck breasts before sous vide cooking.

    3. Sous vide cook duck breasts: Place seasoned duck breasts in a vacuum bag or zip-lock bag. Vacuum seal the bag and cook in the sous vide warm water bath at 135°F (57°C) for about 2 hours. 

    Sous Vide cooking vacuum-sealed duck breasts in a warm water bath.

    4. Finish by searing in a skillet: Sear the sous vide cooked duck breasts skin-side down until the skin turns golden crispy. Flip and sear the flesh side for 30 seconds. Let the breasts rest for 3-5 minutes; slice and serve. 

    Searing the duck skin until crispy and golden brown.

    Tips for making tender and juicy duck breasts

    • Score the skin before sous vide cooking. Keep the scores about 1/2 inch apart and make sure to cut all the way through the edges. This will prevent them from curling up during searing.
    • Vacuum seal the meat without a vacuum-sealer: If you don’t have a vacuum-sealer, you can seal the bag using the water displacement technique. Simply seal all but one corner of the bag, and then slowly place it into a large pot of water. Make sure everything below the zip-line is covered by water, then seal the rest of the bag. 
    • After sous vide cooking, pat dry duck breasts thoroughly, any moisture left on the skin will interfere with the proper searing, making the skin less crispy.
    • Don’t throw away the rendered fat from duck breasts. It’s considered one of the healthiest animal fats. Frying potatoes in this fat is a classic French approach to duck. 

    Temperature and Doneness

    Unlike other types of poultry, duck can safely be cooked to a lower temperature. Our preferred doneness is medium-rare when the breast is cooked to 135°F (57°C). Remember that the temperature will rise slightly when searing in the pan later. This recipe produces the duck meat that’s extremely tender with silky-smooth texture. If you’d like to cook your duck to different doneness, follow the chart below:

    Duck Breast Internal TemperatureDoneness
    130 °F / 54 °CRare
    135 °F / 57 °CMedium-rare (tender and juicy)
    145 °F / 63 °CMedium (less juicy, but still tender)
    155 °F / 68 °CWell-done (More chewy)
    Sliced Sous Vide Duck Breast served with potatoes and green beans on a white plate.

    How Long Does it Take to Sous Vide Duck Breast?

    It’s best to cook the duck breast in the warm water bath for 1.5 hours to 2 hours. You can take it out after 1 hour if you are in a hurry, or cook it for as long as 4 hours. If cooking from frozen duck breasts, you’ll need to add half an hour to the cooking time.

    Can You Serve Duck Breasts Medium Rare?

    Yes, absolutely. It’s safe to consume medium-rare duck meat, as it has been cooked for a long time in the sous vide water bath. The perfectly cooked medium-rare duck breasts have a moist and juicy texture and are so delicious.

    How to serve sous vide duck breast?

    Serve the breast with potatoes or green vegetables, thinly slice the meat and drizzle with red wine sauce or berry sauce. I’d pair it with:

    • Steamed Broccoli
    • Asparagus
    • Carrots
    • Green Beans

    If You Like This Recipe Try Out These Sous Vide Recipes

    • These Rosemary Garlic Sous Vide Lamb Chops are super tender and so flavorful! The sous vide technique allows you to cook better lamb chops than the restaurant. The lamb is precisely and evenly cooked to the temperature you set with your desired doneness!
      Sous Vide Lamb Chops
    • These Sous Vide Lobster Tails are incredibly tender, juicy, and full of delicious lemon butter flavor. With sous vide method, cooking lobster is no longer intimidating. This is a no-fail recipe that produces the most succulent restaurant-quality lobster at home! #SousVideLobster #SousVideLobsterTails
      Sous Vide Lobster
    • Sous Vide Sirloin Steak is a no-fuss, no-fail recipe to cook this family-sized beef cut, turning it to a super tender and juicy dinner full of flavor! Sous vide machine cooks the sirloin steak to your targeted temperature precisely, and no more overcooked edges with the undercooked center! #SousVideSteak #SousVideSirloinSteak #SousVideTopSirloinSteak
      Sous Vide Sirloin Steak
    • Say goodbye to tough and flavorless pork chops! These perfect Sous Vide Pork Chops are super tender, juicy, and full of flavor! The sous vide method cooks the bone-in or boneless pork chops to your targeted temperature precisely, and we’ll show you how to easily finish them with 5 different popular flavors! #SousVidePorkChops
      Sous Vide Pork Chop

    If you tried this recipe, let me know how your Sous Vide Duck Breasts turn out in the comments below!

    These Sous Vide Duck Breasts have crispy skin on the outside and deeply rich and tender meat on the inside. Sous vide method will have you cooking like a pro, making the restaurant-quality duck breasts at your own home!

    Crispy Skin Sous Vide Duck Breast Recipe

    These Sous Vide Duck Breasts have crispy skin on the outside and deeply rich and tender meat on the inside. Sous vide method will have you cooking like a pro, making the restaurant-quality duck breasts at your own home!
    5 from 3 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 2 hours hours
    Total Time: 2 hours hours 15 minutes minutes
    Servings: 2 servings
    Author: Izzy
    Calories: 278kcal

    Ingredients 

    • 2 duck breasts skin-on (about 6 ounces each)
    • kosher salt to taste
    • ground black pepper to taste

    optional:

    • red wine sauce or berry sauce for serving
    • rosemary for garnishing

    Instructions 

    • Add water to the sous vide container or a large pot, set the Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 135°F (57°C). This is my preferred doneness with medium-rare meat, and if you’d like to cook it more or less, follow the temperate guide in the post above.
    • Score Duck Breasts: Place the breast on a cutting board skin side up. Using a sharp knife, score the skin in 1/2 inch intervals with a crosshatch (diamond) pattern. (Be sure to cut through the fat, but not the meat.)
    • Season the breast: Season the skin side with salt only. Then flip the breast, and season the flesh side with salt and pepper.
    • Sous vide duck breast: Place the seasoned duck breast in a zip-lock bag, vacuum seal it using “water displacement” technique: seal all but one corner of the bag, and slowly place it into a container with water. Make sure everything below the zip-line is covered by water. Then seal the rest of the bag. (If you use a vacuum sealer, seal the bag on the dry setting.)
    • When the water has reached the set temperature, lower the bag slowly into the water bath and make sure the breasts are fully submerged.
    • Cook for 2 hours. (This is my preferred cooking time, but you can reduce it to 1 hour if you are in a hurry, or cook as long as 4 hours.)
    • Sear duck breasts: When the timer goes off, remove the duck breasts from the bag and carefully pat dry with paper towel. (Make sure that you pat dry the breast very well, otherwise it will interfere with the searing.)
    • Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add duck breasts with skin-side down in the pan. Remove from heat when the skin is evenly browned, about 5-8 minutes. It’s ok if you find the center of the meat still pink. (If you find there’s too much water coming out of the breast, you can pat dry it one more time, and drain the liquid in the pan. Then continue searing.)
    • Flip the breast and quickly sear the flesh side for about 30 seconds.
    • Let duck breasts rest for 3 to 5 minutes.
    • Slice the breast, serve with potatoes, and drizzle with red wine sauce or berry sauce.

    Equipment

    Anova Sous Vide Cooker
    Sous Vide Cooker
    Zip-loc Bags
    Cast-Iron Skillet
    Kitchen Tongs

    Notes

    • No need to add oil during searing if you use a non-stick pan. The duck breast will render a lot of fat.
    • Don’t throw away the rendered fat from duck breasts. It’s considered one of the healthiest animal fats. You can fry some potatoes in this fat, or pour it in an airtight jar. Store it in the fridge for later use.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 278kcal | Protein: 45g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 174mg | Sodium: 129mg | Potassium: 606mg | Vitamin A: 120IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 10mg
    Author: Izzy
    Course: Dinner, Main Course
    Cuisine: French
    Keyword: Sous Vide Duck Breast
    Tried this recipe?Follow or tag us on Pinterest @izzycooking
    These Sous Vide Duck Breasts have crispy skin on the outside and deeply rich and tender meat on the inside. Sous vide method will have you cooking like a pro, making the restaurant-quality duck breasts at your own home! #SousVideDuckBreast #DuckBreastRecipe

    Editor note: Originally published Nov 18, 2019 and updated Dec 11, 2020.

    Filed Under: Dinner, Sous Vide Tagged With: duck breast, pepper, salt

    About Izzy

    I'm Izzy, a food lover and photographer. Here you’ll find a collection of simple recipes that are perfect for busy people. My blog aims to help you make and enjoy delicious and healthy food at home.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sam says

      March 22, 2021 at 11:47 am

      5 stars
      This was delicious and easy to make! It was a huge hit with my hubby too!

      Reply
    2. Gina says

      March 22, 2021 at 12:34 pm

      5 stars
      5 STARS!!! Loved how this came out!

      Reply
    3. Techdinegirl says

      April 27, 2021 at 7:44 pm

      5 stars
      This was simple, delicious and in many ways better than what I have had in restaurants.

      Reply
    4. Judy Knapp says

      September 29, 2021 at 9:42 am

      The Duck Breast were delicious 😋

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, this is Izzy! On my blog, you will find easy and delicious recipes for the everyday home cook, with easy-to-follow instructions and step-by-step photos.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • These Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs are cooked to perfection EVERY TIME! It’s the best way to cook hard boiled eggs and I’ll share my favorite tips with you and take all of the guesswork out. #AirFryerHardBoiledEggs
      Perfect Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs {Easy to Peel}
    • These Sous Vide Lobster Tails are incredibly tender, juicy, and full of delicious lemon butter flavor. With sous vide method, cooking lobster is no longer intimidating. This is a no-fail recipe that produces the most succulent restaurant-quality lobster at home! #SousVideLobster #SousVideLobsterTails
      Sous Vide Lobster Tails with Lemon Butter
    • Homemade Glazed Mochi Donuts are sticky, soft and chewy, so delicious and incredibly addictive! They taste like other Japanese mochi balls on the inside while crispy on the outside. You can glaze them with your favorite toppings: classic, matcha, or chocolate! This foolproof recipe will satisfy those sweet tooth cravings. #MochiDonuts
      Crispy Glazed Mochi Donuts (Pon de Ring Donuts)
    • Sous Vide Frozen Chicken Breast is one of the best features of a sous vide machine. It’s easy, convenient, healthy and turn out so well EVERY TIME! I never take the time to thaw chicken again after I discovered this method. #SousVideChickenBreast #SousVideFrozenChickenBreast
      Sous Vide Frozen Chicken Breasts

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Copyright © 2022 - Izzycooking