Beer Duck

[liuzhou]

Beer Duck - 啤酒鸭

 

 
I understand that, unlike in China, duck is not a common meat in the USA, but it is worth searching out, especially for this dish from Hunan which is basically a duck stew, but full of exquisite flavors. I'm told that frozen duck meat is available in larger supermarkets or Asian markets in the US, but of course, as always, fresh is best. So much so, that your average Chinese home cook will buy the bird alive!

Ingredients

Duck. 1 lb. This dish calls for cubes of duck meat, preferably from the legs/thighs but breast meat will work too.

Beer. One large can (16oz). Ideally you would choose a Chinese beer. Tsingtao is the most widely available internationally. Here in Liuzhou it would be Liquan Beer from Guilin. But actually, any well-flavored lager type beer will do the job.

Cooking Oil. Vegetable oil - but not olive oil. If you have duck fat to hand, this is even better.

Doubanjiang. 1 Tablespoon. Also called toban-djan or similar in the USA. This is a chile paste made with broad beans.

Garlic. About 6-8 whole cloves

Ginger. One thumb sized piece, finely chopped

 

Dried Red chillies. One or more to taste. If you can source them, 朝天椒干 (cháo tiān jiāo gān, pointing to heaven peppers) or 七星椒干 (qī xīng jiāo gān, 7 star peppers) are best, otherwise long Indian peppers; not Thai or bird's eye chillies.

Dried Tangerine Peel. One large piece - available from Asian markets and stores.

Star Anise. One

Light Soy Sauce. 1 Tablespoon

Dark Soy Sauce. 1 Tablespoon

Scallions.

Salt.

Method   

Wash and thoroughly dry the cubed duck meat. Heat oil or fat and add the garlic and ginger. When you detect their fragrance, add the duck and stir to brown the meat. When browned, add the doubanjiang and stir for a couple of minutes. Add the two soy sauces, the chillies, star anise and tangerine peel. Cover with beer. Add salt.

 

Cover the pan and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes, adding more beer if it begins to dry out. Finish by discarding the star anise and tangerine peel, but adding thinly sliced scallions and serve.

Accompany with steamed rice and a stir fried green vegetable of your choice. I like spinach. Drink any remaining beer! You didn't just buy one can, did you?

 

Edited August 2, 2023 by liuzhou (log)

[KennethT]

@liuzhou I was thinking about doing this - I have a few precooked (sous vide) but unseasoned duck legs that have been burning a hole in my refrigerator.  I usually pick the meat and add to noodle soups but this was intriguing.  Since the meat is already cooked, obviously the cook time would be greatly shortened.  Do you think it might be remotely similar to use the same ingredients but less beer and basically just simmer the sauce for a while and then add the duck pieces for the last 10 minutes or so just to reheat in the sauce?

[liuzhou]

17 minutes ago, KennethT said:

@liuzhou I was thinking about doing this - I have a few precooked (sous vide) but unseasoned duck legs that have been burning a hole in my refrigerator.  I usually pick the meat and add to noodle soups but this was intriguing.  Since the meat is already cooked, obviously the cook time would be greatly shortened.  Do you think it might be remotely similar to use the same ingredients but less beer and basically just simmer the sauce for a while and then add the duck pieces for the last 10 minutes or so just to reheat in the sauce?

 

I'm not sure. It could work, but I suspect the flavour of the duck would be less developed. Kind of like making a tomato sauce and adding cooked meatbals to the sauce to warm them rather than simmering them in the sauce to cook them.

[KennethT]

5 hours ago, liuzhou said:

 

I'm not sure. It could work, but I suspect the flavour of the duck would be less developed. Kind of like making a tomato sauce and adding cooked meatbals to the sauce to warm them rather than simmering them in the sauce to cook them.

also, I just noticed now that there seem to be sliced red chillies - they don't appear to be from the doubanjiang, are they? 

[TicTac]

And here I thought I was coming to see a duck sitting atop a can of beer on the BBQ...

 

How does duck hold up in a stew?  Love duck, but it has very little inter muscular fat, so I would think it would dry out, no?

 

 

[liuzhou]

 

39 minutes ago, KennethT said:

also, I just noticed now that there seem to be sliced red chillies - they don't appear to be from the doubanjiang, are they? 

You're right. I missed them from the ingredients list. Sorry. Will edit. Add them along with the other spices after stirring the doubanjiang.

[liuzhou]

18 minutes ago, TicTac said:

And here I thought I was coming to see a duck sitting atop a can of beer on the BBQ...

 

How does duck hold up in a stew?  Love duck, but it has very little inter muscular fat, so I would think it would dry out, no?

 

 

 

There's plenty fat in the meat. It doesn't dry out. There are a number of stewed duck dishes in Chinese cuisine, especially in Hunan.

Edited August 2, 2023 by liuzhou (log)