Roasted duck legs with red cabbage and apple

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

1. Roast the duck legs

   1 hr 30 min

   Pat the duck legs dry with a paper towel, score the skin in several places, and rub with the salt, caraway seeds, and marjoram. Place skin-side up in a roasting pan, pour in 200 ml water, cover, and roast in a preheated oven at 160 °C (325 °F) for 1 hour 30 minutes.

2. Braise the cabbage

   40 min

   Remove the outer leaves and core from the cabbage, then slice it into thin strips. Finely chop the onion and sauté it in the lard. Add the cabbage, vinegar, caraway seeds, salt, and 100 ml water, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the grated apple and sugar and simmer for another 10 minutes, until the cabbage is tender.

3. Finish roasting until crisp

   25 min

   Uncover the duck legs, increase the oven temperature to 200 °C (400 °F), and roast for another 20–25 minutes, until the skin is crisp and golden brown.

4. Serve

   Adjust the cabbage to taste with vinegar and sugar for a sweet-and-sour flavor. Serve with the duck legs and pan juices, accompanied by Slovak steamed bread dumplings or lokše (Slovak potato flatbreads).

Tip: Add the vinegar at the start of braising to keep the cabbage reddish purple rather than blue. You can also prepare the cabbage a day ahead; it tastes even better reheated.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Kačacie stehná s dusenou červenou kapustou a jablkom