Peking Duck was created in 1855 in the Pen Yee Restaurant
and was for the wealthy, with chefs needing to train for 3
months on the preparation of this dish. Preparing Peking
Duck at home is time consuming but worth while. For the
best results you need to inflate the duck, by blowing up
the skin through a the neck end (if you don't feel up to it
or you may try using a bicycle pump) but this step isn't
necessary . Next boiling water with honey, wine, vinegar
and ginger is poured over the duck to glaze it. The duck is
then hung for 8-11 hours in a well ventilated place (this
can be reduced by more than half by using a fan to dry the
skin). Then traditionally the duck is cooked in clay oven
with charcoal or coal, obviously this step is done in the
oven in this recipe.
4-6 Portions
Peking Duck:
2 kg duck 4 litres water 6 Tbsp honey 5 cm knob of ginger 4
Tbsp soy sauce 125ml rice wine vinegar You will need:
string or meat hooks bicycle pump (optional) fan (optional)
24-30 Mandarin Pancakes (purchase from Chinese Food shops
from the freezer) 24-30 3-4cm spring onion pieces 24-30
3cm-4cm*1cm cucumber batons Hoisin or Plum Sauce Stir
Fried Duck:
2 tsp sesame oil 1 Tbsp ground nut or corn oil 1 garlic
clove, crushed 2 tsp. ginger, finely chopped 30g canned
bamboo slices, shredded 1 large carrot, peeled and julienne
(thin batons .3mm thick and 3 cm long) 50g beansprouts 2
spring onions, finely chopped 3 Tbsp soy sauce
Inflating Duck Skin: Remove the extra fat from the duck and
dry the cavity. Place the nozzle of a bicycle pump in the
neck end between the skin and meat and inflate the skin or
blow with your mouth (optional step). Glaze: Place the
water, honey, ginger, wine and vinegar in a wok or large
saucepan, bring the water to the boil. Holding the duck by
the string dip the whole body of the duck in the water and
ladle the water over it for 20 seconds. To Hang: Hang the
duck by its neck with meat hooks in front of a fan for 2-3
hours or for 8 hours in a dry well ventilated place to dry
the skin. To Cook: Preheat an oven to 200°C. Place the star
anise, spring onion and bruised garlic clove in the duck
cavity. Place the duck breast side up on a rack in an oven
tray, pour a little water in the base of the tray and place
it in the middle shelf in the oven for 20 minutes then turn
the breast side down, reduce the temperature to 180°C and
cook for a further 30 minutes. Turn the duck breast side up
for the final cooking for 20 minutes, if the skin is already
very red reduce the temperature to 150°C or if it is very
pal increase the temperature to 200°C. To Serve: Steam the
pancakes in bamboo steaming baskets or in a steamer. Serve
them on plates or directly from the baskets. Slice off 4cm
squares of the skin with a little meat (5mm). Lay them out
on a serving dish with the spring onions and cucumber batons
and hoisin sauce. To assemble the pancakes together each
guest should spread a little hoisin sauce over the pancake,
then place a piece of duck skin on the pancake and piece of
spring onion and cucumber, then roll them. Stir Fried Duck:
Slice the meat from the duck into even pieces. Place the
sesame oil and groundnut oil in a wok over a high heat and
add the garlic and ginger, cook it for 30 seconds then add
the meat with the remaining ingredients and cook for 2
minutes until hot. Serve with steamed rice alongside or
after the duck pancakes.
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