Ingredients for the Known Ground reconstruction
Ingredient amounts shown for 2 servings.
Known Ground reconstruction
- 1whole plucked wild duck, 2 to 3 pounds, patted dry
- 1 tspkosher salt
- 8 ozfresh or frozen cranberries, Cranberry purée
- 1/2 cupwater, Cranberry purée
Cranberry purée
- 2 tbspsugar, plus more only if needed
Known Ground reconstruction — not personally tested
Escoffier's historical formula specifies wild duck directly.
This is a new Known Ground translation of the 1903 formula omitted from the 1907 English abridgment. The cranberry purée remains tart and separate.
Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 475°F, season the duck, and roast until the breast, innermost thigh, and wing reach 165°F (74°C). Rest for 10 minutes.
2. Simmer cranberries, water, and sugar until the berries burst. Pass through a food mill or blend, then strain for a smooth, tart purée.
3. Carve the duck and serve the warm cranberry purée separately.
Historical formula
Known Ground translation from the 1903 French source: Roast the wild duck and serve separately a purée of red bilberries, or cranberries.
Source note
Known Ground English translation from Auguste Escoffier, *Le Guide Culinaire* (1903), a public-domain French edition. Source location: Roasts, p. 989.
Historical source vs. current safety guidance
Escoffier directs that this bird remain underdone. The Known Ground reconstruction instead follows current USDA guidance to cook duck and goose to 165°F (74°C), checked in the thickest breast and innermost thigh and wing without touching bone.
Published after editorial review
Last revised 8/21/2026. Evidence and limitations should be interpreted as described in the article.
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