4 duck legs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 400g tins plum tomatoes, drained and rinsed
180ml manzanilla sherry
1 tsp dried oregano
A few pinches of dried chilli, to taste
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
150g green olives, stoned and halved
250ml chicken stock
500g pappardelle (or other ribbon pasta)
Extra-virgin olive oil, to serve
Grated parmesan, to serve
Season the duck generously. Gently heat a large, wide pan – you won’t need oil because duck is very fatty. Warm the legs for two or three minutes, until they start to sizzle and release fat, then turn up the heat and brown all over for eight minutes, until golden.
Remove the duck from the pan, turn the heat to medium and add the onions, garlic and a big pinch of salt. Scrape up any sticky brown remnants of duck, and fry gently for eight minutes, until soft. Add the tomatoes, break them up with a wooden spoon, then stir in the sherry, oregano, chilli, bay, cinnamon stick, olives and stock, and bring to a boil. Season to taste, turn down to a gentle simmer, put the duck in the sauce and cover. Cook for 75 minutes, then take off the lid and cook for 30 minutes more, until the liquid has reduced and the meat is starting to fall off the bone.
Lift out the duck and use a couple of forks to roughly shred the meat; keep the bones for stock. Return the meat to the pan, stir well to combine and keep warm.
Bring a pan of well salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Drain, and reserve a little of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the duck sauce and stir to coat every strand; add a splash or two of the reserved pasta water if the mix needs loosening. Divide between plates, drizzle with good oil, scatter over a little parmesan and serve.
