Five Spice Duck Recipes

FIVE SPICE ROASTED DUCK

Steps:

• Pat dry the duck. Combine five spice powder and salt. Rub the entire duck with the five spice powder mixture. Make sure to rub the seasoning in the cavity of the duck as well.
• Let the duck marinate in the fridge overnight.
• The next day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Next, get out a roasting pan. Add the cut up onions and thyme sprigs to the bottom of the pan. Stuff the shallots into the duck and place it on top. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 1/2 hours.
• While the duck is roasting, make the glaze. Combine all the ingredients into a sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer until half the liquid remains. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• After 1 1/2 hours, remove the aluminum foil. Brush the glaze over the duck and bake for another 30 minutes uncovered until the center is 165 degrees F. Add a new layer of glaze after 15 minutes.
• Rest duck for 5 minutes before serving.

FIVE SPICE DUCK SALAD

Steps:

• This exotic duck salad has got it all going on - crunch, spice, juicy fruit and tasty crispy duck.
• Season the duck breast and dust with Chinese five spice powder. Put in a medium-hot frying pan and fry very gently for 5 minutes, turning halfway, until lots of fat has come out of the skin and the skin is golden brown. Take out of the pan and slice thinly - the duck will still be raw in the middle but don't worry! Discard the fat from the pan and put the sliced duck back in. Stir fry for a few minutes, until cooked through and crispy. Set aside.
• Mix the pomegranate seeds, spring onions, coriander, watercress, mango and crispy duck together. Dress with the lime juice and a drizzle of sesame oil. Season to taste.
• Separate the lettuce leaves and arrange on plates. Top with the dressed salad to serve.

FIVE-SPICE DUCK BREAST

Steps:

• Place the duck breasts skin-side down on a cutting board and trim any excess skin that hangs over the sides of the breasts. Flip the breasts over and score the skin with four parallel, diagonal cuts. Dust the breasts on both sides with the five-spice powder.
• Heat a cast-iron pan over medium-low heat. Place duck breasts in the pan, skin-side down, and cook until the fat has melted and the skin is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Flip the breasts over and continue to cook for about 10 minutes for medium doneness. Remove the duck to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes (this ensures the duck will be plump and juicy). To serve, cut the breasts into 1/4-inch-thick slices and spread out in a shingle pattern on a large platter.

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.

PEKING DUCK WITH HONEY AND FIVE-SPICE GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine honey, soy sauce, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes.
• In a large saucepan, bring 4 quarts water to a boil. Meanwhile, remove giblets and neck from duck cavity and discard (or reserve for another use). Cut off excess fat from cavity and neck area, then cut off tail. (This helps balance the duck vertically over the beer can.)
• Using your fingers, carefully separate the skin from the breast meat through the bottom of the breasts and work your fingers upward to separate the skin from the meat (be careful not to tear skin). Next, separate the skin from the backbone through the neck and working your way down until you reach the legs. (Scissors are helpful, but be careful to avoid piercing the skin.) Transfer duck to a rack set in the sink.
• Using a ladle or measuring cup, pour half of the boiling water evenly over top of the duck. Flip duck and pour the remaining water evenly all over second side. Tilt duck to drain all water from the cavity, then pat dry with paper towels.
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder with 1 teaspoon salt, the black pepper and 1 tablespoon of the glaze. Rub the mixture inside the cavity. Stand duck vertically by inserting beer can into cavity and place in a roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Using a pastry brush, brush the remaining glaze all over the duck and sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Place duck in the refrigerator, uncovered, until the skin feels dry and leathery, 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees with rack in bottom third of oven. Remove duck from refrigerator, and add 1 1/2 cups water to the pan. Wrap wing tips and tips of drumsticks with foil to prevent burning, then loosely tent duck with foil. Roast for 15 minutes. Decrease temperature to 350 degrees and roast, tented with foil, until skin is mahogany and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes more, adding more water to the pan if needed.
• Leaving duck on the can, transfer duck vertically to a cutting board and let rest for 15 minutes. Carve the crispy skin from the back and legs of the duck, and slice into strips.
• Carefully remove duck from the beer can and return to cutting board. Carve off the breasts and legs; thinly slice the breasts and shred dark meat.
• Carefully strain pan juices into a small bowl and pour off all the fat. In another small bowl, whisk together the hoisin, sesame oil and up to 1/4 cup of the pan juices to form sauce.
• To serve, spread 1 tablespoon prepared sauce on each tortilla. Top each with some scallions, cucumbers, duck meat and crispy skin. Roll up and enjoy warm.

FIVE-SPICE DUCK BREAST WITH BLACKBERRIES

Steps:

• Trim duck breasts as necessary, removing extraneous fat or gristle. Score the skin side of the breast diagonally with a sharp knife.
• Season both sides of the duck breasts with salt, then sprinkle both sides evenly with five-spice powder. Mix together ginger and garlic and use it to slather the breasts. Cover and let marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. (Alternatively, wrap and refrigerate for several hours, or even overnight; bring back to room temperature before cooking.)
• Place a cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. When pan is hot, lay duck breast in it skin-side down. Let sizzle gently for 7 minutes, until skin is crisp and golden, adjusting heat as necessary to keep from getting too dark too quickly. Turn breast over and cook 3 to 5 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer should register 125 degrees for medium rare. Remove from pan and let rest for 10 minutes on a warm plate. Drain fat from pan (reserve for another use if you wish).
• Make the sauce: Over medium heat, add shallots to same pan and cook until softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add sherry vinegar, brown sugar and half the blackberries, stirring until sugar is dissolved and berries have released their juice. Add chicken broth, raise heat and simmer rapidly until liquid is reduced by half and a bit syrupy. Strain the contents of the skillet into a small saucepan and keep warm.
• To serve, slice duck breast thinly across the grain on a diagonal and arrange on a platter. Spoon the sauce over the meat and garnish with the rest of the blackberries.

FIVE SPICE DUCK

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 with rack set in middle level.
• Wash duck, discarding excess fat, dry duck.
• Combine soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, and five-spice powder. Stir until sugar dissolves.
• Loosen skin from duck breast and leg joint too. Rub marinade all into them, between the meat and the skin, rub some into the cavity as well, put the ginger in there, truss with string (essential).
• Put a rack in a roasting pan. Place on duck with the breast side facing down. Bake 45 minutes, baste often. Turn, bake 45 minutes more, baste often still.
• Rest 15 minutes before carving, tenting with foil if desired.