Instant Pot Duck A l'Orange Recipe

To make this delicious, French-inspired duck dish, you'll need a whole duck, salt, pepper, vegetable oil, chicken broth, orange juice, granulated sugar, an orange for zesting, corn starch, and water. Having all of these items prepared and measured out ahead of time will ensure that the recipe comes together easily. With simple pantry staples like broth, juice, seasonings, and citrus, plus a basic thickening agent on hand, you'll soon be enjoying fork-tender duck in an incredible sauce made right in the pressure cooker. This hearty, elegant meal is worth the time you invest in it!

Add orange juice, sugar, and orange zest. Stir continuously for 2 minutes, until sugar fully dissolves.

Lock the lid into place. Select the pressure cook function and set the time to 25 minutes on high pressure.

Carefully remove the lid. Use tongs to transfer the duck to the prepared baking sheet, breast side up.

Select the saute function on the Instant Pot. Add the corn starch slurry, stirring continuously until the sauce thickens to the desired consistency, about 5 minutes.

While this recipe is designed for the Instant Pot, you can absolutely make a delicious duck a l'orange in the slow cooker with a few small changes. To adapt this recipe, use the same ingredients and cooking technique, simply cooking everything on the low setting for 4–6 hours, until the duck is fall-apart tender. The benefit of the Instant Pot is that pressure cooking reduces the cook time significantly, but the slow cooker will still gradually tenderize the duck after several hours. You'll follow the same steps of seasoning, searing, and assembling everything in the cooker before letting it simmer away hands-free. One difference is that there's no need for a natural release period with the slow cooker, and we don't recommend trying to transfer it to a baking sheet for broiling. Once your cook time is up, the duck should be perfectly cooked through. The sauce may need a bit of corn starch slurry to thicken at the end since it has more time to break down. But overall, the slow cooker is a great option for this French classic.

The cooked duck will keep well refrigerated for 3–4 days after cooking. Be sure to let it cool completely before storing it in an airtight container. Once cooled, the duck meat will continue tenderizing as it sits in the juices. With any leftover duck, we recommend that you slice or shred the meat to use in a variety of dishes throughout the week. Duck makes an amazing sandwich or wrap when paired with caramelized onions, spinach, and sharp cheese. Shredded duck could be used in tacos or nachos for a fun twist. You can also toss duck pieces into salads, pasta, or stir-fries. The rich meat stands up especially well to bitter greens like arugula or kale. Getting 4–5 days out of one duck recipe means you can enjoy the fruits of your cooking labor all week long, so make sure to properly refrigerate the duck to ensure that it stays fresh and delicious.