Crispy Chinese duck with vegetables and BBQ sauce, Hoi An style

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 bunch of soup vegetables, roughly diced
• 1 apple, quartered
• 1 bunch of spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 large onion(s), quartered
• 3 garlic cloves, halved
• 1 piece(s) ginger, finely chopped
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 star anise
• 2 tsp honey
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• e.g. salt and pepper
• n. B. Five-spice powder, approx. 1/2 – 1 tsp
• 1 pinch(s) of chili powder if desired
• possibly herbs, mixed
• n. B. Soy sauce, light, approx. 1 – 2 tbsp
• n. B. Soy sauce, dark, approx. 2 – 3 tbsp
• 1 jar rice wine or red wine, approx. 200 ml + 1 tbsp
• n. B. sugar, brown sugar or honey, approx. 2 -3 tbsp
• 1 shot of Maggi
• some vegetable broth
• some lemongrass
• 3 tbsp sauce thickener
• 4 duck breast fillets or 1 kg turkey or chicken breast strips
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 bunch of soup vegetables
• 2 large onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 500 g mushrooms
• 1 bunch of beans
• 1 large bell pepper(s), red
• 300 g broccoli florets
• 1 jar bamboo shoot(s)
• 1 bag of jasmine rice
• 3 cup(s) water (200 – 250 ml each)

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 3 hours

Hoi An duck slightly spicy with Asian BBQ sauce, can also be prepared with turkey or chicken breast strips

For the sauce, fill a large pot halfway with water and bring to a boil. Add all of the prepared sauce ingredients and bring to a boil. Add rice wine (or red wine). Stir in 1-2 teaspoons of light and 2-3 tablespoons of dark soy sauce and 2-3 tablespoons of honey or brown sugar. Season to taste with 1/2-1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2-1 teaspoon of five-spice powder and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add salt, pepper, brown sugar, five-spice powder, lemongrass powder, Maggi and a little stock powder to taste. Finally, thicken everything with a sauce thickener. For the duck breast, preheat the oven to 160°C fan/convection oven. Wash the duck breast, pat dry and score the skin side in a diamond shape. Then score the meat side with 4-5 cuts. Heat a pan over medium heat and fry the duck breast without oil on the skin side for about 5 minutes until the skin is golden brown. Then turn it over and fry the meat side briefly as well. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Finally, place the duck breast in a baking dish and fill all around with sauce (about 3-4 ladles full). Brush the skin with the rendered duck fat and fry in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes until the skin is nice and crispy and brown. Alternatively, for turkey strips or chicken breast strips, sear the meat in a hot pan in 2 tablespoons of peanut oil. Season the breast strips with 1 pinch of salt, 1 pinch of pepper, and 1 pinch of five-spice powder. If you like it a bit spicier, you can add about 1 pinch of chili powder. When the meat is well seared, remove it from the pan and add it to the sauce later. For the vegetables, first wash the bell pepper and soup vegetables and cut into small strips. Finely chop the onions and garlic, trim and roughly chop the mushrooms. Wash the beans and halve them if necessary, and drain the bamboo shoots. Tear the broccoli into small florets. Then, fry the onions and garlic in a large pot in hot peanut oil. Add the mushrooms and fry briefly. Then add the beans, carrots (from the soup vegetables), and the remaining vegetables. Add the three cups of water and simmer over medium heat. Season with a pinch each of salt, pepper, herbs (if desired), five-spice powder, lemongrass, brown sugar, and vegetable stock. Then add 1 tablespoon of rice wine, light soy sauce, Maggi, and honey. Rice goes well with this; we cook it according to the package instructions (I always use about one cup per person). Tips: I always use jasmine rice because I find it has more flavor. When serving, I always use a coffee cup and lightly coat it with oil. The cooked rice goes in there, and then the cup is tipped onto a plate. I always use some ready-made Chinese seasoning powder for seasoning. You can also fry shrimp with it; it tastes delicious. Basically, you can fry any meat you like with it (it tastes just as delicious with pork or beef). The sauce freezes very well.