Duck carries enough fat that this dish needs no oil at all: the pieces go into a dry pan skin side down and cook until the fat has run and the skin has taken colour. From there it is a plain braise, a whole bottle of beer, star anise, cassia, bay and dried chili, twenty minutes with the lid on, then a hard reduction at the end.
Chinese · Main
Beer Braised Duck With Star Anise and Ginger
Duck pieces render in their own fat until the skin is gold, then braise for twenty minutes in a whole bottle of beer with star anise, cassia and soy.
- Prep15 min
- Cook40 min
- Serves3
- LevelMedium
Ingredients
| 1/4 | duck , jointed, skin on |
| 1 small piece | ginger , peeled and sliced |
| 1/3 head | garlic , cloves left whole |
| 20 | Sichuan peppercorns |
| 1 | star anise |
| 1 small piece | cassia bark |
| 2 | bay leaves |
| 2 | dried chilies |
| 1 bottle | beer |
| 2 tbsp | light soy sauce |
| 1 tbsp | dark soy sauce |
| 1 tbsp | oyster sauce |
| to taste | sugar |
| to taste | salt |
| 1 handful | garlic leaves , cut into lengths |
Method
- If the duck was frozen, blanch it first; drain it well and lay the pieces skin side down in a dry pan over medium heat.
- Cook until a good deal of fat has rendered and the skin is golden, add half a teaspoon of salt and keep going until the pieces are coloured and the moisture has cooked off.
- Lift the duck out, leaving the fat behind, and fry the garlic, ginger, scallion ends and Sichuan peppercorns in it until fragrant, then return the duck and toss.
- Pour in the whole bottle of beer, adding a splash of water if the duck is not quite covered, and add the star anise, cassia, bay leaves and dried chilies.
- Season with the light soy, oyster sauce and sugar, and use the dark soy to bring the colour up.
- Bring it to a hard boil, then turn the heat to medium low, cover and braise for about 20 minutes, checking now and then.
- Add the garlic leaves, turn the heat up and reduce the sauce until it coats the duck; leave a little liquid so the meat does not tighten.
Notes
- Do not add oil. Duck fat is the cooking medium, and the skin will not crisp in added oil.
- The skin has to be properly dry and gold before the beer goes in. That step cannot be hurried.
- Keep a splash of liquid in the pot at the end. Reduced completely dry, duck goes hard as it cools.
Ratios and technique checked against 诺贝尔一直讲 on Douguo (啤酒鸭). The method here is written by Stellaok; the photograph is the source kitchen's, credited on the image above and linked back to the page it came from. No recipe text is reproduced.