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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