Sam Choys Award Winning Roast Duck Recipes

Steps:

• Unwrap the ducks and allow them to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. With a fork, prick the skin without piercing the meat. This will allow the fat to drain off while the ducks cook.
• Meanwhile, in a very large stock pot which can hold the 2 ducks, heat the chicken broth with 1 tablespoon of kosher salt until it boils. Add the ducks very carefully and bring the stock back to a boil. If there isn't enough stock to cover the ducks, add the hottest tap water to cover. If the ducks float to the top, place a plate on top to keep them immersed. When the stock comes back to a boil, lower the heat and simmer the ducks in the stock for 45 minutes.
• When the ducks are finished simmering, skim off enough duck fat from the top of the stock to pour a film on the bottom of a 14 by 18 by 3-inch roasting pan. This will keep the ducks from sticking when they roast. Carefully take the ducks out of the stock, holding them over the pot to drain. Place them in the roasting pan, pat the skin dry with paper towels, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt and the pepper. If you have time, allow the ducks to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow the skin to dry.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. (Be sure your oven is very clean or it will smoke!) Roast the ducks for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow them to rest, covered with aluminum foil, for 20 minutes. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Remove wing tips, neck flap, tail end, excess fat, and drumstick knuckles.
• Rinse both ducks.
• Place in a dish, and pour shoyu (soy sauce) over them.
• Roll the ducks in the shoyu and let sit for about 10 minutes.
• Keep rolling in the shoyu every 3 to 4 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 450ºF.
• Mix all dry ingredients.
• Place ducks breast side up on roasting rack in a roasting pan and sprinkle thoroughly with marinade.
• Put a little marinade inside cavities.
• Roast in 450ºF oven for 30 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 325ºF.
• Cook for 1 hour, or until meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 170ºF to 175ºF.
• No basting is required.
• Serve with steamed rice.

Steps:

• Using a fork, pierce the duck skin all over to allow the flavor of the marinade to penetrate and the fat to drain. Combine honey, soy sauce, coffee, ginger, miso and brown sugar together in a bowl, stir well to dissolve the brown sugar and miso. Squeeze the citrus juice into the marinade then stuff the cavity of the duck with the citrus halves. Place the duck in a 2 gallon freezer bag, then pour in the marinade. Seal and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• The next day, remove the duck from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towel. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Place the duck on a rack in a roasting pan. Fold the wing tips back and tie the legs together. First, roast the duck for 20 minutes, the high temperature will caramelize the sugars on the outside of the duck and set a rich mahogany color. After 20 minutes, drop the temperature down to 325 degrees F and roast for 1 hour. Duck heaven baby!
• You can start the bok choy when the duck has about 10 minutes left in cooking. Preheat a large skillet on medium high. Add peanut oil.
• Saute cut side down for about 1 minute until golden. Discard the oil. Take the back-side of a knife and give the ginger a good whack. Bruising the ginger will release a ton of flavor. Add the ginger to the pan with bok choy then add the mirin, soy, and chicken stock. Stir in the miso, careful not to damage the food.
• While you have the spoon in your hand, stir in the cornstarch mixture, then let the sauce simmer and thicken for a few minutes. Finish with the fresh cherries, a pinch of salt, and fresh cracked white pepper.

Steps:

• Remove wing tips, neck flap, tail end, excess fat, and drumstick knuckles.
• Rinse both ducks.
• Place in a dish, and pour shoyu (soy sauce) over them.
• Roll the ducks in the shoyu and let sit for about 10 minutes.
• Keep rolling in the shoyu every 3 to 4 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 450ºF.
• Mix all dry ingredients.
• Place ducks breast side up on roasting rack in a roasting pan and sprinkle thoroughly with marinade.
• Put a little marinade inside cavities.
• Roast in 450ºF oven for 30 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 325ºF.
• Cook for 1 hour, or until meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 170ºF to 175ºF.
• No basting is required.

Steps:

• Rinse duck and pat dry. Remove neck and giblets and save for another purpose. Remove excess fat from cavity and tail area and trim off a bit of flappy neck skin. Prick duck skin all over with tip of sharp paring knife, making sure not to penetrate meat.
• Mix together salt and 5-spice powder. Season interior of duck with 1 tablespoon salt mixture; use remainder to generously season exterior (you may have a little left over). Combine orange zest with grated ginger and garlic, then smear mixture inside cavity. Place orange wedges in cavity. Tie legs together. Secure neck flap with wooden skewer or toothpicks. Place duck on rack in roasting pan breast-side-up and refrigerate overnight, uncovered.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, bring duck to room temperature and make the glaze: Bring orange juice, honey, sugar and soy sauce to a simmer. Add sliced ginger and star anise, then reduce mixture until you have a medium-thick syrup, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Roast duck for 2 hours, carefully pouring off fat and turning duck over every 30 minutes. Paint with glaze and roast another 30 minutes (2 1/2 hours in all). Tent with foil if glaze begins to get too dark. Duck is done when temperature at thickest part of leg reads 165 degrees. Paint duck once more, keep warm and let rest 20 minutes. Use poultry shears to cut into quarters (remove backbone first) or carve in the traditional way, removing legs from carcass and slicing breast. Serve with mashed butternut squash if desired.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl mix together the salt, ground black pepper, thyme, and rosemary; set aside. This will be your spice blend for seasoning the roasted potatoes and the duck breasts.
• Place cubed potatoes into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of your spice blend over the top of the potatoes. Toss the potatoes in the pan until they are evenly coated with oil and seasonings. Spread into a single layer across the bottom of the baking dish and bake for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven.
• While the potatoes are roasting, stir together the blueberries, water, apple juice, sugar, and jalapeno in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until the mixture has reduced to the consistency of syrup, about 10 minutes.
• Cook the pancetta in a large skillet over medium heat until crispy. Remove the pancetta to drain on a paper towel, leaving the drippings in the skillet. Add the shallots and the mushrooms to the hot skillet; stir and cook them until soft and just beginning to brown. Remove the shallots and mushrooms and set aside. Increase heat to medium-high and place the bok choy in the hot skillet. Stir and cook the bok choy until the leaves are wilted and the white stalk pieces are tender, about 5 minutes. Return the shallots, mushrooms, and pancetta to the skillet, turn off the heat and set aside.
• Rinse the duck breast halves and pat dry. Rub the remaining spice blend onto both sides of the duck breasts. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat, when the pan is hot put in the vegetable oil and butter. Immediately place the duck breasts in the pan, skin and fat side down. Do not move the duck breasts until the skin is deep brown, about 5 minutes. Turn the breasts and cook until the internal temperature of the thickest part is 160 degrees F (71 degrees C) for well done. Remove the duck from the pan and place on a plate, covered with foil to rest for 5 minutes. While the duck is resting, place the skillet with the bok choy mixture onto a burner over medium heat to warm through.
• Slice each duck breast diagonally into 1/2 inch strips. Divide the bok choy mixture among four plates and drizzle each serving with 1/2 tablespoon of aged balsamic vinegar. Arrange the sliced duck breasts on top of the bok choy mixture; ladle on blueberry sauce. Serve with oven-roasted potatoes on the side.