Duck Pieces in Sweet Bean Sauce
A classic dish of Shandong (Lu) cuisine, featuring duck in a glossy, reddish-brown sauce with a rich aroma. The meat is tender and succulent, with a savory flavor balanced by a subtle hint of sweetness.
Ingredients
Cleaned young duck (rinsed, beak chopped off keeping the tongue, claws removed, large bones cracked)
750 g
Taro (boiled, peeled, black spots trimmed, cut into irregular chunks)
30 g
Shaoxing wine
20 g
Soy sauce
10 g
Sugar
20 g
Peanut oil (additional amount used in steps)
60 g
Scallions (cut into segments)
10 g
Ginger (sliced)
10 g
Sichuan peppercorns
5 g
Sweet bean sauce
20 g
Instructions
1
Boil the duck
Rinse the cleaned young duck, chop off the beak while keeping the tongue, and remove the claws. Crack the large bones, place in a pot of boiling water with scallion segments, ginger slices, and Sichuan peppercorns, and simmer until about 60–70% done, then remove.
2
Debone and cut into blocks
Place on a cutting board breast-side down, chop off the head, neck, and legs, remove the duck bones, trim the edges evenly, cut the duck breast down the middle into two halves, then cross-cut into rectangular pieces about 2.6 cm long, arranging them back into the original duck shape.
3
Prepare the taro
Boil the taro until tender, peel, trim off any black spots, and cut into irregular chunks.
4
Arrange the ingredients
Transfer the duck in its original shape onto a pot rack, add the taro, duck neck, legs, and bones, then place the rack into a pot. Add the duck broth (enough to just cover the duck), Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and sugar.
5
Cook the sauce base
In a separate wok, add peanut oil and sugar, stir-fry until it turns a light golden color, add the sweet bean sauce and stir-fry until cooked through, then add the original duck broth, stir to dissolve, and pour the mixture into the duck pot.
6
Fry the aromatics
In a clean wok add a small amount of peanut oil, heat over medium heat to about 60% hot (about 150°C), add scallion segments, ginger slices, and Sichuan peppercorns, fry until golden, then remove the aromatics and pour the flavored oil into the duck pot.
7
Braise over low heat
Place a plate on top of the duck to weigh it down, and braise over low heat for about 1 hour.
8
Plate and sauce
Remove the plate, lift out the rack, and use a flat plate to hold it and invert the duck onto a large serving platter, then remove the rack. Thicken the sauce remaining in the pot with starch to a thin flowing consistency and pour it over the duck pieces. Serve.
