I love traditional french duck (of course a grandmother's recipes) and I thought I couldn't appreciate as much any other way of cooking. So wrong! The Hokkien braised duck is a wonder: slightly flavored with ginger, garlic, a pinch of cinamon, star anise and cloves. This recipe has become for us an indispensable recipe as soon as we want to please our guests! 
What about the wine? Of course, beyond the recipe, all is about wine pairing. I would say, you don't want to chose a tanic wine, you want a friendly wine able to accompany the spices without destroying them. Let's try Le Jas Red: grenache and carignan, the wine respects the duck !
The recipe:
INGREDIENTS
- 2 kg Duck
- 3 slices Ginger
- 4 slices Blue Ginger (Galangal)
- 6 cloves Garlic
- 2 Tau Kwa
- 4 Tau Pok
- 6 Hard-Boiled Eggs Peeled
- Parsley For garnishing
MARINADE INGREDIENTS
- 1 tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Sugar
- 2 tsp 5-Spice Powder
SAUCE INGREDIENTS
- 2 tsp Sugar
- 2 tsp 5 Spice Powder
- 2 Star Anise
- 8 Cloves
- 1 stick Cinnamon
- 4 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
- 1.5 litres Water
- 8-10 small cubes Rock sugar
CHILLI SAUCE
- 5 Large Chillies
- 2 Chilli Padi
- 5 cloves Garlic
- 1 tbsp Vinegar
- 1 tsp Sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
PREPARATION METHOD - DUCK
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Clean the duck thoroughly include all innards in the duck cavity (see tip 1). Then blanch the duck for a few minutes in a wok of boiling water.
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Remove any remnant feathers. Rub all over with coarse salt, then rinse thoroughly.
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Pat dry and rub each of the marinade ingredients all over the duck and in the duck cavity.
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Tuck in the duck wings and webs, then marinate overnight (or at least for 1-2 hours).
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Wash, peel and slice the ginger and blue ginger. Then wash and peel the garlic. Stuff the blue ginger and garlic into the cavity of the duck.
PREPARATION METHOD - CHILLI SAUCE
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Peel and wash the garlic, then chop coarsely.
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Remove the seeds from the chilli and rinse. Cut into small pieces and blend finely.
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Place the chilli and garlic in a bowl. Then add in the vinegar and sugar and mix well.
COOKING METHOD - DUCK
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Add the sugar to the wok and fry over low heat until it melts.
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Once the sugar turns golden, quickly add in the 5-spice powder, star anise, cloves and cinnamon stick and fry for 30 seconds over low heat. Then add in the dark soy sauce.
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Next, place the whole duck in the wok and coat it evenly with the soy sauce mixture.
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Add in 1.5 litres of water until the water covers the duck to around three-quarter, and add in the rock sugar. Bring back to a boil over high heat.
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Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium and braise the duck uncovered for 1.5 hours, turning the duck over mid-way. Turn the duck a few times towards the last 30 mins to ensure the bottom of the duck is not burnt as the sauce thickens.
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Transfer the duck to a plate. Then use the same braising gravy to braise the tau kwa, tau pok and hard boiled eggs for about 30 minutes.
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Chop up the duck and place on a serving dish, together with the tau kwa, tau pok and hard boiled eggs. Garnish with parsley, and serve with the chilli sauce and steamed rice.