I've not had Peking Duck Chinese. Only remember it/ a semblance in the movies, Ralphie in A Christmas Story comes to mind. Restaurant orange duck or duck breast. Cooked rare per the chef's desire. I don't do rare fowl so well, and wild mallards, cooked by my mom until over cooked, dry and smothered. I guess I can say I'm still looking for a good duck meal.
Ya, Frank or Chief, you can do it. and shoot me a picture when it happens. And a recipe. ta-da.
Here's how you start it. Take 1 duck, with all feathers removed. Sew the skin edges to the muscle tissue, so that it's air tight. Hang the duck, and inflate the skin with air (with a hand tire pump, and inflating needle) to balloon the skin away from the muscle. Brush with a water/honey glaze and let dry. Brush it again and let dry. Do three times. While the duck is drying, make Chines pancakes, and rice. Chill the rice. You will also be making a duck soup for the final course. So start a mild onion broth, with a bit of soy sauce and chicken soup base, but not strong. Here's the recipe for the mop that you brush onto the skin, multiple times.
7 cups water
3 slices ginger (about as thick as you'd slice carrot for steaming)
2 green onions, chopped
¼ cup honey
2 tbs. rice vinegar
3 tbs. cornstarch, dissolved in 6 tablespoons water
Combine all ingredients into a pan and cover. Cook over medium heat until the water jsut starts to bubble a little. Remove from heat and let cool.
Method:
1. Wash the duck, inside and out, taking care to remove any remaining organs from the duck cavity.
2. Remove the wings from the end of the drumette to the wingtips. Remove the loose neck skin close to the body.
3. Sew the skin to the muscle. Dry with paper towels.
4. Inflate the skin.
5. Tie a length of strong sting to a bamboo skewer. Fun the skewer through the remaining neck sin. Hang the bird in a cool, dust free, easy to get to, but protected place. Turn a low power fan on it.
6. Brush the bird with your mop sauce. Let dry for a couple hours. Mop the bird at least two more times, letting it dry completely before mopping again.
7. Fire up the grill with a divided bed of charcoal. Place the duck onto a V-roasting rack and place over a drip pan between the divided charcoal beds. Cover, and set vents to half closed position. Cook for 1 hour.
8. Heat the Chines pancakes.
9. Using a rediculously sharp knife (no serrations here kids), Remove the breasts from either side of the breastbone, and carve acoss the breast, very thin, with each slice keeping some of the crispy fat and skin. Serve between folded pancakes, with a thin-slice cucumber and sliced, spring onion, and a touch of Hoisin Sauce.
10. Use the thigh and wing meat to add to the rice, to make duck fried rice for the 2nd course.
11. Finaly, use the carcass, and back meat to make duck soup. When it's done, remove all bones before serving.
And save that duck fat for frying potatoes!
Here's pictures:
Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North