Forget your usual celebratory meals and try this Cranberry, Cherry & Five Spice Roasted Duck Recipe. Wrap the tender roasted duck in accompanying sesame pancakes with lashings of cranberry sauce and crunchy pickled plums and baby cucumbers.
Cranberry, Cherry & Five Spice Roasted Duck Recipe
Serves 6
- 2.5kg whole duck
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1⁄2 tsp white peppercorns
- 4 cloves
- 1⁄2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 3 star anise
- 1 tsp salt flakes
- 1 cup frozen cherries, thawed
- 1⁄2 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup Shaoxing cooking wine
- 1⁄2 cup honey
- 1⁄4 cup soy sauce
- 2 cinnamon quills
- 4 whole dried chillies
How to make this Cranberry, Cherry & Five Spice Roasted Duck Recipe:
1. Using a skewer, pierce the skin of the duck all over. Place the duck in a large, heatproof bowl, and pour over boiling water to cover. Set aside for 30 seconds. Carefully remove the duck from the water and place on a wire rack set over a deep-sided roasting tray.
2. Place the fennel seeds, peppercorns, cloves, ground cinnamon and sugar in a small spice grinder with 1 star anise, and grind until fine (if you don’t have a spice grinder, you can use a mortar and pestle instead). Add the salt and mix well to combine.
3. Pat the duck dry and rub all over with the spice mix. Place the duck in the fridge, uncovered, for 1 hour, or until the skin is dry.
4. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan forced). Place the duck in the oven and cook for 45 minutes. Carefully remove the duck from the tray and drain the fat from the roasting tray. There should be no fat left.
5. Carefully add the cherries, cranberries, Shaoxing cooking wine, honey, soy sauce, cinnamon quills, dried chillies and remaining 2 star anise to the bottom of the roasting pan and mix to combine. Top with the wire rack and duck and continue to cook in the oven for a further 1 hour, or until the sauce is sticky and reduced and the duck is golden.
6. To serve, slice the duck and serve with the cranberry sauce, sesame pancakes, pickled plums and pickled cucumbers.
