Crispy Duck Pancakes

Ingredients

• 4 duck breasts, or 1 whole duck
• 1 tbsp chinese five spice
• 1 tbsp sea salt flakes
• 120 g hoisin sauce
• 12 Chinese pancakes, or small tortillas
• 1 cucumber, in fine matchsticks
• 1 bunch of spring onions, in fine strips
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp soy sauce

Method

1. Dry the skin out

   Score the fat, then leave the duck uncovered on a rack in the fridge overnight. Crisp duck skin is entirely a question of dryness — this step does more than anything that happens in the oven.

   12 h

2. Salt and spice

   Rub the five spice and salt into the skin and the flesh. The salt draws out yet more moisture as it sits.

3. Slow roast, then blast

   Roast on a rack at 150°C for 2 hours, pouring off the rendered fat two or three times, then raise to 220°C for 15 minutes, brushing with the honey and soy in the last five. Glaze earlier and the sugar blackens long before the fat has rendered.

   2 h

4. Cut the garnishes properly

   Cut the cucumber and spring onion into long fine matchsticks. Chunky pieces make the pancake impossible to roll.

5. Rest and shred

   Rest 15 minutes, then shred the meat with two forks and cut the crisp skin into strips. Keep the skin separate until the last moment so it stays crisp.

   15 min

6. Serve at the table

   Steam the pancakes briefly and let everyone build their own: hoisin, duck, skin, cucumber, spring onion, roll. Assembling them in the kitchen defeats the entire ritual.