Peking Duck with Mandarin Pancakes

Serves 4


Ingredients:

1 x 1.7kg duck
3 litres boiling water
1 tbsp honey
½ cup (125ml) hot water
1 Lebanese cucumber
12 spring onions
2 tbsp hoisin sauce

Mandarin Pancakes:
2½ cup (310g) plain flour
2 tsp caster sugar
1 cup (250ml) boiling water
1 tbsp sesame oil


Method:

• Wash the duck and remove the neck and any large pieces of fat from inside the carcass. Hold the duck over the sink and very carefully and slowly pour the boiling water over it, rotating the duck so the water scalds all the skin. You may need another kettle of boiling water at this stage.


• Put the duck on a rack placed in a baking dish. Mix the honey and hot water together and brush 2 coats of this glaze over the duck, making sure it is entirely covered. Dry the duck, preferably by hanging in a cool, airy place for about 4 hours. Alternatively, you could use an electric fan on a cool setting, positioned a metre or so away. The skin is sufficiently dry when it feels papery.


• Remove the seeds from the cucumber and slice the flesh into matchsticks. Cut an 8cm section from the white end of each spring onion; make fine parallel cuts from the top of the section towards the white end. Place the spring onion pieces in iced water, they will open into 'brushes'.


• Preheat the oven to hot 210°C. Roast the duck on the rack in the baking dish for 30 minutes. Turn the duck over carefully without tearing the skin; roast it for another 30 minutes. Remove the duck from the oven and let it stand for a minute or two, then place it on a warm dish.


• To make Mandarin Pancakes: Place the flour and sugar in a medium bowl and pour over the boiling water. Stir the mixture a few times and leave until lukewarm. Knead the mixture on a lightly floured surface to make a smooth dough. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes.


• Take 2 level tablespoons of dough; roll each one into a ball. Roll out to circles 8cm in diameter. Lightly brush one of the circles with sesame oil and place the other circle on top. Re-roll to make a thin pancake about 15cm in diameter. Repeat with the remaining dough and oil to make about 10 'double' pancakes.


• Heat a frying pan and cook the pancakes one at a time. When small bubbles appear on the surface, turn the pancake over and cook the second side, pressing the surface with a clean tea towel. The pancake should puff up when done. Transfer the pancake to a plate. When cool enough to handle, peel the 2 halves of the double pancake apart. Stack them on a plate and cover them at once to prevent them drying out.


• To serve: Finely slice the duck. Place the pancakes and duck on separate serving plates. Arrange the cucumber sticks and spring onion brushes on another serving plate. Place the hoisin sauce in a small dish. Each diner helps themselves to a pancake, spreads a little sauce on it and adds a couple of pieces of cucumber, a spring onion brush and finally a piece of duck. The pancake is then folded over into a neat envelope shape for eating.

Nutrition per Serve:
Protein 45g
Fat 15g
Carbohydrate 75g
Dietary Fibre 5g
Cholesterol 200mg
2635 kJ (625cal)