And I am not sure why. I start to tire of the good old fashioned Sunday lunch as soon as the weather starts to warm up. Easter roast lamb is usually the last I'll eat before the dark Autumn afternoons return, and I'm crying out for comfort food. At a push I might concede to a herby-lemony-garlicky roast chicken, spatchcocked and BBQ'd, but only if it is served with salad and some buttery new potatoes.
So this duck poses a problem. I'll roast it, but there'll be no gravy or a l'orange sauce today. I'm going Chinese, thinking of a variation on the all time Chinese restaurant classic, duck with pancakes. So first off the easy bit, rub the duck generously with Chinese 5-Spice Powder, and bung in the oven for about 2 hours on, 180c/gas mark 4. Keep basting it every so often so it goes really crispy, but otherwise you can leave it alone. The duck can be roasted in advance and left if you prefer.
Next up, the salad dressing. Add 150mls of soy sauce and 2 tbsps soft brown sugar to a pan and heat gently. Add a teaspoon of Chinese 5-Spice and if you have a star anise then pop one in. Chop up about 4 or 5 ripe plums and after the mixture has bubbled away for a bit and become a bit syrupy, add the plums and heat through for about 3 or 4 minutes. The dressing can then be left to cool, just remove the plums so that they don't go all mushy and keep them to one side.
So this duck poses a problem. I'll roast it, but there'll be no gravy or a l'orange sauce today. I'm going Chinese, thinking of a variation on the all time Chinese restaurant classic, duck with pancakes. So first off the easy bit, rub the duck generously with Chinese 5-Spice Powder, and bung in the oven for about 2 hours on, 180c/gas mark 4. Keep basting it every so often so it goes really crispy, but otherwise you can leave it alone. The duck can be roasted in advance and left if you prefer.
Next up, the salad dressing. Add 150mls of soy sauce and 2 tbsps soft brown sugar to a pan and heat gently. Add a teaspoon of Chinese 5-Spice and if you have a star anise then pop one in. Chop up about 4 or 5 ripe plums and after the mixture has bubbled away for a bit and become a bit syrupy, add the plums and heat through for about 3 or 4 minutes. The dressing can then be left to cool, just remove the plums so that they don't go all mushy and keep them to one side.
All you need to do now is put the final dish together. Start by shredding the duck. It doesn't have to be neat, the key is shredded, not sliced. So use a fork to steady the bird and then pull away with another fork, just like they do at your local Chinese. The salad base can be whatever you have to hand, I use a spinach/watercress/rocket mix but it really doesn't matter. To add some crunch coarsley grate some carrot, and then on top of this some cucumber matchsticks and julienned spring onions. Place a good portion of the shredded duck on top, drizzle some dressing on top and don't forget to add the plums too.
Now eat.
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