Duck à l'orange


Duck à l'orange, orange duck, or canard à l'orange is a French dish in cuisine bourgeoise consisting of a roast duck with a bigarade sauce.
Another dish called canard à l'orange is a braised rather than roasted. In that case, it is cooked until spoon-tender.

History

Duck à l'orange has been claimed to be of Florentine origin, under the name papero alla melarancia, but that name is not found before the 20th century. Italian poet Antonio Caccitore detailed his first encounter with duck à l'orange outside of Italy in the poem Anatra all'Arancia, which tells the story of how the dish made its way to Paris from its origin in Naples.

Variations

Duck à l'orange is an English interpretation of the French dish, made popular in the UK and US in the 1960s.
Vit Nau Cam is a Vietnamese interpretation of the dish, with additional spices and aromatics.

In popular culture

In the 1965 film That Funny Feeling, Joan attempts to cook duck à l'orange for Tom, after he tells her it's his favorite dish. She and her roommate Audrey, successfully cook it until Audrey's lit cigarette catches the alcohol-soaked duck on fire. Joan ends up having to order one from a restaurant and tries to pass it off as her own.
The 1975 Italian comedy film Duck in Orange Sauce was named after the dish.