This recipe for Sake Braised Duck Legs will seriously impress you and anyone who tries it! I’ve paired it with some delicious lotus root, fingerling potatoes, and scallions all sauteed in the rendered duck fat. I braise the duck meat in sake for added tenderness, a simple step that makes a huge difference.

A white plate with a leg of crispy duck leg, vegetables, and lotus root.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Braising meat is a technique that involves browning the meat in oil first (you don’t need oil with duck as the natural fat is more than enough) and then cooking it slowly in liquid that partially covers the meat. This technique for the duck makes it the perfect combination of crispy on the outside but juicy and succulent on the inside.

Searing the skin side of the duck skin until browned in the pan, then cooking it uncovered in the oven guarantees a perfectly crispy skin.

I use sake as the braising liquid, and I pair the duck with some crunchy sauteed vegetables for a wonderful textural balance. The flavors in this recipe were meant to be together: scallions, ginger, garlic, and sake.

Ingredients & Substitutions

Ingredients including duck and lotus root on a marble countertop with text labels.

lotus root – Lotus root has a mild sweet flavor that compliments the crispy savory duck wonderfully. If you cannot find lotus root, you can substitute it with other root vegetables like carrots and radishes.

potatoes – I use purple fingerling potatoes in this recipe because I think they look elegant. However, you can use any potatoes you like, just make sure they are cut into even-sized pieces so they cook evenly.

sake – Sake is used for braising in this recipe which offers a subtle, delicate flavor. Use an inexpensive cooking sake, you do not need a fancy sake for this recipe. You can also use a dry white wine.

How to Make this Recipe

Dry the duck skin. Then add them skin side town to a cast-iron, enameled cast-iron pan, dutch oven, or heavy-bottomed stainless steel pan over medium heat. You do not need oil because the fat from the legs will become the oil for this dish. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned.

Four raw seasoned duck legs in a large pot.

Note: You do not need a lid for the pan/pot you choose. If you cover the duck while it is cooking, the skin will no longer be crispy.

In the meantime, prepare your vegetables. Cut the fingerling potatoes in half, dice the onion, slice the ginger, and chop the garlic.

When the legs are browned, flip them and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then, transfer them to a plate.

Four duck legs cooking in a large pot on the stove.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Without cleaning the pot/pan, turn the heat up to medium-high. Add all the vegetables to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and cook until they start to brown, 10-15 minutes.

Note: Here, you are cooking the vegetables in the rendered duck fat, so no additional oil is needed.

Potatoes and lotus root cooking in a large pot.

Add the legs back into the pan, skin side up. Add enough sake to go at least halfway up the legs. DO NOT COVER THE DUCK WITH THE SAKE. You want to make sure that your skin stays crispy. You will need 1.5-2 cups of sake.

Transfer the whole pot/pan to the oven. Cook for 30 minutes, then lower the heat to 350F and cook for an additional 30 minutes. The skin should stay crispy (don’t cover the pan!) and the legs should be tender.

Duck legs, potatoes, and lotus root together in a pot with vegetables.

More Recipes You’ll Love

There are plenty of highly rated poultry recipes on my blog, and here are some you’ll love to try after this.

Crispy duck leg with vegetables.

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Crispy duck leg with vegetables.

Sake Braised Duck Legs

5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Save
These crispy skin sake braised duck legs are tender as can be with amazing flavor, and are slow braised with tender sauteed veggies.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 40 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, French, Japanese
Diet: Gluten Free, Kosher
Servings: 4
Calories: 728kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 duck legs includes the thighs
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 1.5 lbs lotus root
  • 1 lb fingerling potatoes
  • 1 bunch scallions
  • 1/4 cup ginger julienne
  • 5 cloves garlic sliced or roughly chopped
  • 1.5-2 cups sake

Instructions

  • Dry the duck skin. Then add them skin side town to a cast-iron, enameled cast-iron pan, dutch oven (you do not need a lid), or heavy bottomed stainless steel pan over medium heat. You do not need oil because the fat from the legs will become the oil for this dish. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned.
  • In the meantime, prepare your vegetables. Cut the fingerling potatoes in half, dice the onion, slice the ginger, and chop the garlic.
  • When the legs are browned, flip them and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then, transfer them to a plate.
  • Preheat the oven to 400F.
  • Without cleaning the pot/pan, turn the heat up to medium-high. Add all the vegetables to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and cook until they start to brown, 10-15 minutes.
  • Add the duck legs back into the pan, skin side up. Add enough sake to go at least half way up the duck legs. DO NOT COVER THE DUCK LEGS WITH THE SAKE. You want to make sure that skin stays crispy.
  • Transfer the whole pan to the oven. Cook for 40 minutes, then lower the heat to 350F and cook for an additional 30 minutes. The skin should stay crispy (don't cover the pan!) and the legs should be tender.

Notes

You do not need a lid for the pan/pot you choose. If you cover the duck while it is cooking, the skin will no longer be crispy.
You do not need any additional oil in this recipe because the duck legs have fat that you render out while browning them. Then, you cook the vegetables in the rendered duck fat.
Cooking method adopted from Mark Bittman’s Crisp-Braised Duck Legs.

Nutrition

Calories: 728kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 54g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 197mg | Sodium: 270mg | Potassium: 1531mg | Fiber: 12g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 60IU | Vitamin C: 104mg | Calcium: 128mg | Iron: 7mg
Did you try this recipe?I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a Review to let us know how it came out, if you have a successful substitution or variation, or anything else.
5 from 2 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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