Pressed Duck White House Recipes

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.

Steps:

• 1. Herb rub. If using fresh bay leaves, pull out the center veins. Combine all the ingredients for the herb rub in a spice mill or blender and grind to a coarse paste.
• 2. Marinating the duck. Cut up the ducks by removing the 2 legs and the 2 boneless breasts (with skin) from each bird. Reserve the necks and carcasses. Score the skin on the breasts by drawing a very sharp knife across the skin in a diagonal crisscross pattern, 4 or 5 lines in each direction. Be careful to cut only into the skin and not into the flesh. This helps render the fat quickly when the breasts are cooked. Rub the duck breasts and legs with the herb paste as evenly as you can, rubbing some inside the scored cuts. Put them in a medium bowl, cover, and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or as long as 24 hours.
• 3. Stock. Cut the wings off the duck carcasses, remove as much skin and fat as comes off easily, and cut the carcasses in half (you can bend them until they snap, then cut between bones, or use a cleaver). You should now have 4 wings, 4 pieces of carcass, and 2 necks. Heat the oil in a large (6- to 8-quart) heavy-bottomed pot over high heat. Add these 10 pieces to the pot and brown them for 10 to 12 minutes, turning once or twice. This step is important for building flavor in the stock but not all of the surfaces need to be evenly brown. Pour off the fat that has accumulated in the pan, then pour in enough cold water to barely cover the bones. Bring the stock to a boil, turn the heat to very low, and skim off any fat or foam that rises to the surface. Add the onion, carrot, celery, thyme, and bay leaves and gently simmer uncovered for 2 to 3 hours.
• Sauce. Strain the stock, discard the bones, and return the stock to the pot. Add the wine, shallot, and cherries. Boil the sauce until it is thickened and reduced to about 2 cups, 45 to 60 minutes. (The sauce can be made a day ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days.)
• Roasting the legs. Preheat the oven to 425°F. About 45 minutes before serving, heat a large (10- to 12-inch) ovenproof skillet (cast iron works well) over medium-high heat. Pour in a film of vegetable oil and heat. Add the duck legs skin side down and cook until the skin side browns, 4 to 5 minutes. Without turning the legs over, put the pan in the oven and roast for 10 minutes. Turn the duck legs and continue to roast until the skin is very brown and crisp and the meat is tender when pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes longer. Remove them from the oven and let rest on a plate in a warm spot.
• 6. Sautéeing the breasts. When the legs have been in the oven for 20 minutes, begin to cook the breasts. Pour a thin film of oil into another large (12-inch) skillet and heat it over medium heat until hot. Add the duck breasts skin side down, reduce the heat to medium-low, and let cook slowly and undisturbed. After 5 minutes, about 1/2 inch of fat will have rendered into the pan, which will help render the remaining fat from under the skin. Continue to cook the breasts until the skin is very brown and crisp, another 5 to 10 minutes. If the rendered fat rises above the level of the skin and the duck meat begins to be submerged, pour some of it off into a small bowl. This will prevent the breast meat from overcooking before the skin is crisp. When the skin is crisp but not blackened, turn the breasts over and cook just 1 minute for rare or 2 to 5 minutes for medium-rare to medium. The meat should feel firm but still springy and an instant-read thermometer inserted horizontally into the breast should register 120°F to 125°F for rare, 130°F to 135°F for medium-rare to medium. The temperature will continue to rise about 10° as they rest. Transfer them to the plate with the legs and let them sit on the back of the stove for 4 to 5 minutes before carving.
• 7. Finishing. Bring the sauce to a simmer and stir in the chopped sage, thyme, and balsamic vinegar. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Arrange the duck legs on a warmed platter or individual plates. Using a sharp thin knife, slice the breasts on a diagonal 3/8 inch thick and arrange the slices in a fan shape leaning against the legs. Pour the sauce over and around the duck.
• Resembling giant raisins, sweet and sour varieties of dried cherries from Yakima Valley in Washington are exciting and relatively new ingredients. Dried sweet cherries have a prunelike flavor, but the tart (sour or pie) cherries, which are usually processed with sugar, have a brilliant tangy flavor. When simmered with wine and duck stock, they make a balanced, savory, and full-flavored sauce that plays beautifully off the crispy citrus-rubbed duck in this recipe.

Steps:

• Salt and pepper duck generously on both sides. Place halves, skin side down, in large saute pan (preferably seasoned cast-iron or nonstick) or 2 medium saute pans. Wedge thyme and garlic under skin. Cover pan with lid or foil; place over low heat. Braise for 1 hour (duck should crackle and sizzle gently; skin should be golden and crisp; most fat should be rendered). Turn duck; cover pan. Braise for 1 more hour, until duck bottom is well browned and meat very tender.
• Remove duck to cutting board; cut halves in half. Reserve fat from pan. In clean saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons fat (if there is not enough, use canola oil) over medium-high heat. Place duck pieces skin side down, and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, just until skin is crisp and dark. Transfer to dish, and serve.

Steps:

• 1. Blanch, toast and sliver almonds. 2. Wipe duck inside and out with a damp cloth. Combine soy sauce, salt and sugar and rub over duck skin. Pour remainder into duck cavity, swishing it around to coat the interior. Drain off excess and discard. 3. Put duck in a deep heatproof bowl. Cut celery in 3 or 4 pieces trim off scallion roots and arrange over duck. Steam 2 hours by the bowl-in-a-pot method (see HOW-TO, _Steaming). 4. Drain duck, reserving liquid for stock. Let bird cool slightly then bone, leaving skin and original shape intact (see HOW-TO, _Duck: To bone). Transfer duck to a large flat plate or cutting board. 5. With both hands, press down on duck, flattening it to a 3/4-inch thickness. Then sprinkle generously on both sides with cornstarch. Return bird to heatproof bowl and steam 30 minutes more. Let cool, then cut in quarters. 6. Heat oil to boiling. Add duck, one quarter at a time, and deep-fry until golden. Drain on paper toweling. Let cool slightly then cut bird in 1 1/2-inch squares, each with some skin. Keep warm. 7. In a saucepan, combine sugar, vinegar, catsup, hot sauce and remaining soy sauce and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring. Meanwhile blend remaining cornstarch and cold water to a paste, then stir in to thicken. 8. Shred lettuce and arrange on a serving platter with duck squares on top. Pour sauce over and serve, garnished with toasted almonds. NOTE: This dish is also known as War Shu Opp.The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook. ©1994 by Gloria Bley Miller.

Steps:

• First prepare a consommé from the duck wings, necks, gizzards, and hearts. Put them in a saucepan with 2 cups water, 1 onion, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Strain and save the stock. Roast the ducks in a hot oven (425°F) for 30 minutes. Crush the duck livers and put them into a chafing dish with port and cognac. Cut the duck breasts into thin slices and put them in the chafing dish. Cut off the legs and set them aside. Crush the carcasses in a duck press to extract the juices. Pour duck consommé through the press. Pour the juices and consommé over the duck slices, livers, and the wine and cognac. Add the lemon juice. Cook in the chafing dish over a high flame for 20-25 minutes, stirring briskly until the sauce becomes thick and chocolate colored. Salt and pepper the pressed duck to taste. Serve hot. Broil the legs under medium heat for 10 minutes. Serve them separately as a second course.