Crispy Roast Duck

Mouth-watering. Period.

INGREDIENTS
I whole Pekin duck (thaws for 24 hours in fridge) about 4 pound
1 gallon cold water
2 oranges (cut halves)
2 drop of red food coloring *optional*
1 tbsp
5 spices powder
2 tbsp sea salt maltose for brushing

PROCEDURE
Remove plastic bag cover thawed duck,then remove and discard excess fat from body cavity and neck. Prick skin all over very thoroughly with a fork on both sides (25 to 30 pricks for each duck or as many times as you can to make the skin crispy).

Prepare a large pot or bin with cold water ,cut oranges and few drop of red coloring.Then let the clean duck dip into the cold water mixture for 2-3 hours.

Preheat oven at 350 F.Remove duck from cold water and pat it dry with paper towel.Rub salt and 5 spices powder all over the duck.Line up an aluminum foil over a roasting pan (to prevent deep scrubbing).

Place duck onto the roasting pan ,breast facing downward,in the middle rack of oven .Use bake setting to roast for 40-50 minutes,then turn the breast facing upward,roast for another 45 minutes to 1 hour or until golden brown .

Remove duck from oven brush with maltose all over the skin, let it sit for 10-15 minutes before carving.Serve warm as main course.


Thanks to www.beachloverkitchen.com.

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Thai Cucumber Salad

INGREDIENTS
Dressing
1/2 Cup Vinegar
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 tsp Sea Salt
1 Cucumber, halved and thinly sliced
4 Shallots, thinly sliced
5 Thai Bird's Eye Chilies, chopped

PROCEDURE
Mix the dressing ingredients and bring it to a boil. Set aside to room temperature.

Place sliced cucumber, shallots and chilies in a mixing bowl. Mix the dressing over the cucumber mixture. Marinate briefly and serve with deep fried fish cakes, prawns or even fried chicken.


Thanks to http://www.seasaltwithfood.com.

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Cantonese Chicken, Shiitake Mushroom, Leek and Water Chestnut Stew

INGREDIENTS
25g (1 oz) dried shiitake mushrooms
30ml (2 tbsp) olive oil
2 chicken legs
225g (8 oz) can water chestnuts, drained and sliced in half
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 leek, weighing about 200g (7oz), chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2.5cm (1 inch) piece ginger, cut into thin strips
45ml (3 tbsp) Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
60ml (4 tbsp) dark soy sauce
10ml (2 tsp) caster sugar
45ml (3 tbsp) oyster sauce
1 chicken/vegetable stock cube (which makes 450ml stock if mixed with hot water)
1 star anise
250g (8 oz) fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced
10ml (2 tsp) cornflour
8 spring onion, finely sliced

PROCEDURE

1. Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in 300ml (½ pint) water for 20 minutes. Drain and thinly slice the mushrooms.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a flameproof casserole and fry chicken all over until golden.
4. Transfer the pieces to a plate put it to the side.
5. Add the onion, leek, garlic and ginger to the casserole and fry until the onion and leek have softened. Add the dried mushrooms and all its liquid to the casserole as well as water chestnuts, soy sauce, wine, sugar, oyster sauce and star anise. Next, add the stock cube to the mix and stir, making sure it dissolves complete. Let the sauce bubble for a minute or two then add the chicken to it. Make sure the chicken it more or less covered.
6. Place the casserole in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
7. After 30 minutes, add the fresh mushrooms to the pot and stir well. Place the casserole back in the oven, this time at 160°C/fan 140°C/325°F/gas mark 3 for another 30 minutes.
8. Remove the chicken pieces from the casserole and keep warm. Mix cornflour with a little cold water to form a paste, stir into the boiling liquid and simmer for 2 minutes. Serve immediately and don’t forget to sprinkle spring onions on top!

Serving Suggestion
Serve on top of egg or rice noodles.
Note
If you can’t find dried shiitake mushrooms, use another dried variety instead. The only sort I could find at my local shop was wild ones.
Simply pull off the chicken skin because it ends up a bit flabby. It’s mainly used for flavouring the sauce.


Thanks to http://www.greedygourmet.com.

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