Slow Roasted Waddling Pie

Serves 6

Takes 5 hours 30 minutes

Tim’s most favoured meat is definitely the duck. Inspired by our Founder, this indulgently comforting recipe is perfect for feeding large groups. A little goes a long way with this dish, rich duck meat and a cream-ladened mash makes for a rather decadent combination. A meal that will no doubt cheer up these dark and dreary nights and stave off the winter chill.

1. Preheat your oven to 160C fan.
2. Place the whole duck into a baking dish, pour the beer all around the duck, avoiding the skin.
3. Season liberally with salt and pepper and wrap tightly with a few layers of foil so its steams whilst cooking. Place in the oven for 4 hours.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough for you to handle. Peel off all the skin so you are left with just the meat. Shred into a separate bowl, be careful of small bones! You can discard the skin or render down in a pan to use as lard for future cooks.
5. Pour the remaining fat from the baking tray into a bowl and leave to set. This is incredible fat for roasting potatoes, veg etc. Do not throw away, this truly is liquid gold!
6. Set a deep frying pan on a medium heat, pour in a couple of tablespoons of the duck fat and add in the onions, sweat down until softened but not coloured, add in the crushed garlic and cook until fragrant.
7. Add in the tomato puree and allow to cook out for 4 minutes. Add in the plain flour and let this begin to toast with the onion, garlic and tomato puree for approx. 2 minutes.
8. Deglaze with the red wine, scraping any gnarly bits from the pan, cook off the alcohol for 4 minutes then add the beef stock, bay leaves, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and sugar. Bring to the boil then turn the heat down and allow to blip away for 20 minutes until it begins to reduce and thicken.
9. Season with salt and pepper at this stage, adjusting to your acquired taste. Add in the shredded duck meat and frozen peas, stir to combine and allow the peas to thaw and cook through in the sauce. Set aside to cool slightly whilst you make the mash.
10. Place your potato chunks in a deep pot of well-salted water. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and cook until nice and tender, approx. 15 minutes.
11. Drain and tip back into the warm pot. Add in the salt, pepper, cream, mascarpone and gruyere. With a fork or masher (or if you have a ricer, this would be very handy) mash the potatoes well so everything is combined into an indulgently creamy mash.
12. Increase your oven temperature to 180C fan.
13. In a large baking dish, spoon in the duck filling then top with the creamy mash. Using a fork, make rustic-looking peaks and ridges on the mash, this gives you wonderful crispy bits when cooked.
14. Place in the oven for 30 minutes until the top is looking gloriously golden. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
15. Serve onto warm plates and top with a sprinkling of chives. Proper comfort food that no doubt, everyone will enjoy!

• 2kg Whole Botterills’ duck
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 440ml can lager or ale (we used Anspach & Hobday smoked lager)
• 1 large white onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 175ml red wine
• 450ml beef stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs of thyme, leaves pulled off the stalks
• 3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 300g frozen peas
• Handful of chives, finely chopped for garnish

For the mash:

• 800g potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
• 50ml double cream
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 100g mascarpone cheese
• 200g gruyere cheese, grated