Detailed step-by-step recipe with photos: Step 1
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Prepare the ingredients for duck legs with cranberry sauce for the New Year.
If you don't want or can't use orange, replace it with plain water in the sauce. As you can imagine, the taste will become a little sadder.
I take fresh rosemary, a small sprig of a few centimeters.
I add approximately 7 grams of salt (weighed) to the duck and 1 gram (small pinch) to the sauce.
Your taste doesn't have to be the same as mine. Adjust the salt yourself.
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Step 2
Finely zest the orange and squeeze out the juice.
I remove the zest using a fine grater, without touching the white layer.
Before doing this, I always scald the orange with boiling water. After all, it was definitely processed with something, but we don’t need it.
I got a small but juicy orange and the juice turned out to be 130 grams. 100 grams will go into the sauce, and 30 into the marinade for the duck.
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Step 3
Season the legs with salt and pepper, add thyme, chopped garlic, half the zest and 30 grams of orange juice. Stir, cover with film and leave to marinate for several hours.
I can marinate for 5 or 25 hours. Most often I marinate in the evening and cook it the next evening.
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Step 4
Pour cranberries into a saucepan, add orange juice, remaining zest, a pinch of salt, 40-50 grams of sugar, rosemary and cook for 5 minutes.
I think this sauce should be quite sweet. You can start with 20-30 grams of sugar, and then, if desired, increase the amount.
If there is not enough orange juice, you can simply add a little water.
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The best recipes for the New Year's table 2026
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Step 5
Remove the rosemary and puree the sauce with an immersion blender. Rosemary can be returned.
I never make a completely smooth sauce. I prefer the rougher version, where you can find a piece of the berry.
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Step 6
Pour the cooled sauce into a jar and refrigerate until serving.
You can serve it either cold or warmed up.
Cranberry sauce can last in the refrigerator for up to a week. I kept it longer.
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Step 7
Turn on the oven at 170 degrees. Place the legs in the pan, skin side up, and bake.
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Step 8
After about 20 minutes, turn the legs over and return to the oven.
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Step 9
After another 20 minutes, turn the legs over again, cover with foil and bake for another 20 minutes.
I turn it over in order to render out the fat, so that the skin becomes not sticky and rubbery, but pleasantly crunchy.
I cover it with foil so that the chicken legs don't burn. If your oven doesn’t make the top very brown, then you don’t need foil.
As a result, baking lasts about an hour.
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Step 10
Duck legs with cranberry sauce can be prepared a little ahead.
Cool the finished legs, wrap them in foil and place them in the refrigerator. Up to three days.
Same thing with the sauce: cool, wrap tightly and put in the refrigerator. Only he already has more time. About a week.
You can also freeze everything for up to 3 months. Wrap the duck tightly and minimize contact with air (vacuum sealing is generally fine). This way it will not dry out, spread or absorb odors.
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Step 11
Duck legs with cranberry sauce are ready for the New Year.
Have a nice and happy holidays everyone!
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