Pressed Duck with Plum Sauce
METHOD
Place all marinade ingredients in a pot and gently bring to the boil, allowing the flavours to infuse and the sugar to dissolve. Allow to cool then strain.Take a sharp knife and cut the duck cleanly between the breast. Open it up and you will see the back bone, cut it out so you are left with 2 pieces of duck each with a breast and a leg. Place the duck in a suitable container, pour the cool marinade over, give a good mix, wrap and place in the fridge overnight.
Next day, turn on your steamer filled with plenty of water. Once boiling, take the duck out of the marinade and place skin-side-down on the steamer tray and steam for 1 hour (be careful not to let the steamer boil dry, add more hot water if required). Remove duck from the steamer and allow to cool down enough to handle. Place the duck skin-side-down on a chopping board and remove the rib cage using your fingers then using a small sharp knife, cut along the leg bone removing the bone. Do the same for the wing so you are left with 2 halves of a duck with no bones. Place on a tray, wrap with plastic film, place another tray on top with approx. 4kg of weight on top of that and leave in the fridge overnight.
Ingredients
- 1.8kg Canter Valley whole duck
Marinade
- 115ml light soy sauce
- 225ml shauxing cooking wine
- 10 spring onions, sliced (white part only)
- 10 pieces dried orange peel
- 5 star anise, crushed
- 5 tbsp rock sugar, crushed
- 5 knobs ginger, peeled and sliced
Dusting
- 50g corn flour
- 25g rice flour
- 4 egg whites
- 400g palm sugar
- 100ml fish sauce
- 100ml tamarind juice
- 100ml hoisin sauce
- 200g Provisions plum paste