Ingredients
1 no ingredients
Directions
Someone asked about Peking Duck. I've got two recipes in my
collection - one is too simple, the other too long to post.
So I'll just describe what to do, very briefly. If you want a good
detailed recipe, check out Ken Hom's Chinese Technique (Simon &
Schuster, 1981).
1. Loosen the skin from the duck by massaging it, pulling the skin
away where possible.
2. Blanch the duck for a couple of minutes.
3. Hang it up to dry for 4 hours, then baste it with sherry or with
honey-water 1/2 and 1/2 mixture. Hang it up again to dry for 4 hours.
4. Roast duck - one recipe says the other says
30 min. at 375 15 min at 450
1 hour at 250 55 min at 350
30 min at 400 20 min at 450
The rationale for this I'm not sure of, but all recipes claim that
changing the oven temperature makes a vast difference.
5. To serve - slice off skin and cut it into 1"x2" pieces. Cut meat
into similar-sized pieces. Provide 2" scallion lengths (green and
white part), hoisin sauce (canned or bottled), pancakes (below). Each
diner rolls a bit of meat, a bit of skin, and a scallion length into
a pancake that has been spread with about a teaspoon of hoisin sauce
and eats the mess with fingers.
Pancakes (adapted from Grace Zia Chu, Pleasures of Chinese Cooking):
2 c flour, 1 c boiling water, 2 T dark sesame oil
Add water to flour in a bowl and work with a wooden spoon into a
dough. Knead 10 min. and let rest for 10 min.
Form into a long roll about 2" in diameter. Cut into 1/2" pieces and
flatten to 1/4". Brush a little oil over a piece of dough and lay
another piece over it. Roll out with rolling pin, slowly and from the
center out, until the piece is 4" or more in diameter. Proceed until
all dough is rolled out.
Heat ungreased griddle over low flame and add dough circle. When it
bubbles slightly, turn it over and heat the other side. While it is
still warm, pull apart the two halves and fold at the center with the
greased side inside. Repeat with remaining dough circles.
Steam for 10 min. before using as above.
From: Michael Loo
Servings: 1 duck
Peking Duck Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Duck; Meat; Poultry
The History of Recipes
We are able to read the history of `recipes` back into the distant past, in truth as far back into recorded history as the ancient Egyptians, and possibly even further. In practice though, generally, these ancient records were just basic hieroglyphic or cunieform recipes for meal preparation.
The truth of the matter is, the most ancient recipe discovered, according to food historians is a collection of stone tablets in Sumerian which recount the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made drinkers feel `wonderful`. As we move into The time of the romans around 25BC a man called Apicius assembled a number of scripts which described recipes prepared by his fellow Romans. In his publication, Apicius recounts how the meals were separated into appetizers, entrees and desserts, a very modern way of dining. Aspicius recounts how the early Romans were skilled in the use of a good variety of herbs, including some familiar names for example bay, mint and dill. As we move on, there are two interesting cookery books dating from the 1300s : a book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary titled `Curye on Inglish`. Don`t be fooled by the titles though, these two books have no connection with the indian curry that we all know today, but rather descriptions of the types of meals prepared for the rich people of that period. Later, in the fifteenth century, the Crusaders brought back many new spices and herbs from the holy lands, including spices such as basil and rosemary. These new culinary innovations led to an outbreak in recipe books, most of which are now in academic collections. During the next few centuries, the powerful families of Wesstern Europe tried to serve the most exotic banquets, and consequentially chefs and their collection of recipes could command a high salary. Notwithstanding that, it was during the 1800s that cookery and recipe books became really popular. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Merritt Farmer in the USA, devoted much of their lives to collecting, verifying, and writing down the recipes of their peers. By the advent of the 20th century, recipe publications were increasing in popularity mostly due to better eduction, more spare time and having more money to spend. |
We hope you enjoy this Peking Duck recipe.
