Homemade Chinese crispy duck

Who doesn’t love a good Chinese crispy duck?  We’ve been making our own homemade version for ages and I thought it was about time to share the recipe here.  This homemade version of crispy duck is far healthier than the restaurant version as it isn’t deep fried.  But it’s just as delicious.  And unbelievably easy to make.

This crispy duck dish is a huge hit with kids as they get to make up their own food and it’s also fun and easy to serve when you’ve got friends over. It’s an impressive meal that always goes down well but really doesn’t take much doing to make it. 

HOMEMADE CHINESE CRISPY DUCK RECIPE
Serves: 4

For the crispy duck:
1 duck around 1.5 kgs (without giblets)
2 spring onions
3-4cm piece ginger (skin on sliced in to ¼ inch thick slices and bruised)
2-3 garlic cloves (peeled and flattened with the side of a knife)
1 generous tbsp Chinese five spice powder
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To serve:
Chinese pancakes (shop bought and steamed according to packet instructions)
6 spring onions julienned (cut in to thin strips about 3 inches long)
2 x 3 inch piece of cucumber cut in to match sticks
hoisin sauce
chilli oil (optional)

Heat the oven to 160°C (fan assisted).

To start with pat your duck dry with some kitchen towel and get it as dry as you can.  Combine the five spice, salt and pepper and rub this all over the duck, including inside the cavity.  Stuff the cavity with the 2 spring onions (roughly cut so they fit), the bashed/bruised ginger and garlic.  Sit the duck on a rack in a baking try.  The rack is really important as you don’t want the duck to be touching the fat that will drip off it.

Leave the duck to cook for 3 hours.  Remove from the oven and drizzle with a tablespoon of the fat that has dripped off the duck as this will help crisp up the skin.  Turn the oven up to 200°C (fan assisted) and return the duck to the oven for 30 minutes.

Once cooked, shred the duck using two forks to pull the meat off the bones.  Serve with the spring onions, cucumber and hoisin sauce.  If you like a little heat in your food, I recommend a few drops of chilli oil in each pancake.

This crispy duck is not only delicious and easy but it’s a fun dish for kids as everyone gets to make up their own pancakes.  Anya loves making her own and scoffs pancake after pancake even though she isn’t usually a big eater.  It’s so easy to make that you can easily make it for a crowd too – just make 2 ducks instead of one.