Sautéed Duck Breasts with Orange-Cranberry Gastrique

Gastrique (gahs-TREEK) is a French term for a sugar and vinegar reduction that is added to sauces to make what is, in effect, a sweet and sour sauce. Sometimes the sugar is caramelized for different notes of sweetness. The complexity that comes from the intense sourness offset by a parallel sweetness goes especially well with rich poultry and game birds. A small amount of gastrique is added to a veal stock, for instance, to serve with sautéed squab/pigeon.

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