Red Cooked Duck With Five Spices Food

PAN-SEARED FIVE-SPICE DUCK BREAST WITH BALSAMIC JUS

Steps:

• In a large, heavy self-sealing plastic bag, combine the garlic, ginger, five-spice powder, salt, and pepper. Add the duck breasts, seal, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C/gas 6. In a large ovenproof sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Sear the duck breast, skin side down, for 5 minutes; turn and sear for 5 minutes on the other side. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast for 5 minutes for medium-rare. Transfer the duck breasts to a plate and keep warm.
• To make a balsamic jus, pour off the fat from the pan. Return the pan to medium-high heat, add the wine, and stir to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook to reduce the wine by half. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook to reduce for several more minutes.
• Cut the duck breasts into diagonal slices and serve drizzled with the balsamic jus.

RED-COOKED DUCK WITH PRESSED BEAN CURD

Steps:

• Prepare bean curd: In a saucepan combine water, 1/4 cup of the soy sauce and five-spice powder. Add bean curd and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and let bean curd marinate in liquid, 1 hour. Using a slotted spoon, place bean curd in one layer on a plate lined with paper towels. Reserve cooking liquid. Cover bean curd with more towels, then weight with 5-pound weight. Bean curd must be pressed under weight at least 5 hours, or refrigerated with weight up to 24 hours.
• Prepare duck: In a nonreactive bowl mix duck with garlic, the remaining 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup of the Shao Hsing and sugar. Marinate overnight.
• Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium-high heat. Add duck, skin-side down, and cook 5 minutes, or until well-browned. Turn and cook 2 minutes more. Remove duck to a plate and discard rendered fat. Place pan over high heat, and add remaining 1/2 cup Shao Hsing and reserved bean curd cooking liquid, stirring to scrape up any browned bits. Add ginger, scallions, chili peppers and star anise and bring to a boil. Place duck pieces in a sand pot (or an enamelware or cast iron pot) skin-side up. Using a slotted spoon, transfer ginger, scallions and spices to pot and scatter over duck pieces. Pour cooking liquid over duck to barely cover. You may not need to use all liquid. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer, basting occasionally, 1 hour. (If you use a sand pot, read instructions carefully. Be sure to use a flame tamer to prevent pot from cracking.)
• Just before serving slice pressed bean curd into 1/4-inch thick slices. Add bean curd to pot and simmer 1 minute to heat through. In a cup, dissolve cornstarch in water to consistency of heavy cream. Using a slotted spoon, divide duck, bean curd and aromatics among 6 plates. Bring cooking liquid to a boil and add cornstarch mixture, stirring well until thickened. Taste for seasoning, then spoon sauce over duck.

AUTHENTIC CHINESE 5-SPICE PEKING DUCK

Steps:

• thaw duck overnight in refrigerator.
• remove giblets and trim excess fat from tail area or anywhere hanging.
• pierce chopstick or skewer under wing and bring through to other side to pierce through under the other wing on the other side in order to give you a way to dunk and hang duck. wings may be removed if desired.
• in large wok or pot bring water to a boil.
• add in ginger, vinegar, soy sauce, xiao xing, and honey and stir to dissolve honey completely.
• make a slurry with cornstarch (mix with water) then add to boiling mixture.
• dunk duck into boiling mixture and spoon liquid over duck for a couple of minutes making sure you completely moisten duck and render some fat.
• repeat process for another couple of minutes.
• immediately hang duck in cool room with a fan on high pointed directly on duck. make sure you put a pot or similar under duck to catch drippings.
• rotate duck to ensure even drying. should take about 5 hours. skin will become taunt and tight.
• after 4-6 hours, rub duck with 5-spice powder to taste.
• heat oven to 375 degrees.
• place duck onto roasting or cooling rack on middle or top rack of oven with a large pan filled with about 2 inches of water on bottom rack of a 375 degree oven. this will catch any drippings, keep your oven clean, and keep duck moist.
• roast uncovered for about 1-1 1/2 hours rotating it 2-3 times.
• check internal temperature for doneness. mine was perfect at 175 degrees in the breast. note that convection ovens will cook duck quite fast.
• remove duck and rest 10 minutes before serving whole or chopping Chinese style on the bone.

FIVE-SPICE DUCK

Steps:

• To make the five-spice rub, put the fennel, cinnamon, star anise, Szechwan peppercorns (or cardamom), cloves, and chipotle pepper in a small pan over medium heat and toast for a few minutes until aromatic, shaking the pan. Let cool, then grind the toasted spices in a spice mill or clean coffee grinder. Transfer the ground spices to a bowl. Add the ginger, garlic, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine well.
• Pat spice rub generously all over the skin of the ducks, place them on a rack over a roasting pan, and refrigerate them, uncovered, for at least 2 hours, or, preferably overnight.
• Preheat a grill.
• When you are ready to cook the ducks, place them on a rotisserie over a grill with a drip pan set directly under the ducks. Keep the fire fairly low to avoid flare ups. Cook the ducks until the juices run clear and an instant read thermometer inserted into the thigh reads 175 degrees F, about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove the ducks from the rotisserie and carve them into breast and leg-thigh portions.

FIVE-SPICE DUCK BREASTS WITH VEGETABLE STICKS

Steps:

• Cut all the vegetables into to thin sticks, about the same size as the beans. Drop the beans into a pan of boiling water and bring back to the boil.
• Add the carrots and the red pepper and cook for 1 minute. Drain, rinse under cold water, and then dry on kitchen paper.
• Lightly score the skin of each duck breast into a diamond pattern with the tip of a sharp knife, taking care that you don't cut through the meat.
• Heat a dry frying pan until it is quite hot. Add the duck breasts, skin-side down, reduce the heat to medium and cook them for about three to four minutes until the skin is crisp and golden brown.
• Turn the breasts over and cook them for another five minutes, or a little longer if you don't like your duck too pink. Meanwhile, mix together the five-spice powder, honey, sweet soy sauce, balsamic vinegar and chili.
• Pour away all of the excess fat from the pan. Add the honey mixture and leave it to bubble away, turning the duck breasts now and then, until they are nicely glazed.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a wok or another frying pan, add the garlic, ginger and vegetables and stir-fry for one to two minutes until they are cooked but still crunchy. Season with some salt and pepper.
• Pile the vegetable sticks into the centre of two warmed plates. Slice each duck breast on the diagonal and carefully sit it on top of the vegetables.
• Spoon over any remaining glaze and serve immediately.

ROAST DUCK LEGS WITH RED WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Put the duck legs in one layer in a roasting tin on a bed of rosemary sprigs and garlic cloves. Sprinkle with salt and five-spice powder. Roast for 1 hr.
• Bring the wine and jelly to a gentle simmer, stirring to dissolve the jelly, then continue to simmer for 5 mins. When the duck has been cooking for an hr remove from the oven and spoon off almost all the fat (save it for roast potatoes), then pour the wine mixture around it and return to the oven for 10-15 mins to finish cooking and reduce the sauce.