Name: Crispy Sweet-and-Sour Orange Duck
Yield: Makes 6 main-course servings
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons rendered duck fat, peanut oil, or vegetable oil, for sautéing; 5 cups brown duck broth, chicken broth, or water; Three ¼-inch-thick slices fresh ginger; 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, or more to taste; 3 juicing oranges; 6 cups peanut or vegetable oil, for deep-frying; ¼ cup dark soy sauce, preferably a Japanese brand; 9 Pekin (Long Island) duck legs, including both drumsticks and thighs; 3 scallions, including the greens, sliced fine; 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped; 6 star anise (available in Asian groceries), crushed; ¾ cup cornstarch; 1 tablespoon sugar, or more to taste; 1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns, roasted in an iron skillet over medium heat for 10 minutes until they smell fragrant

Preparation info

Makes
6
main-course servings

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Duck Cookbook

By James Peterson

Published 2003

About

Whether this dish exists in China I don’t know, but the ingredients and techniques are all typically Chinese, and the finished dish is far more like Chinese food than like any other cuisine I know. Although the braising is accomplished much like the French-inspired recipe, instead of wine or broth, typical braising liquids in European cooking, this duck is braised with broth that’s been flavored with garlic, scallions, ginger, star anise, a little sugar, a