Suzhou Style Braised Duck (苏式酱鸭)

Sweet and juicy duck!

Ingredients

Duck - 1, about 3 pounds
Sea salt - enough to rub the whole duck
【Braising】

Oil - 1 tsp

Soy sauce - 4 TBSP

Rock sugar - 1/4 cup, about 50 g

Cinnamon Stick - 1 stick, about 5 g

Star Anise - a couple pieces, about 3 g

Cloves - 5 pieces
Red yeast rice powder - 1 TBSP
Green onion - a bunch, about 30 g

Ginger - about 30 g

Cooking wine - 4 TBSP

Salt - optional

【Serving Sauce】

Red yeast rice power - 1 TBSP

Rock sugar - 1/4 cup, about 50 g

Cooking wine - 1 TBSP

Ginger - about 20 g

Steps

1. Rinse the duck and rub it all over with sea salt, both inside and outside. Shake off any excessive salt, and let it rest for minimum 2 hours.

2. Put duck in a cooking pot filled with water. Cook until the water is boiling. Take out the duck and pat it dry with paper towel.

3. Empty the cooking pot and put the duck back to the cooking pot.

4. Put a sauce pan on medium heat, add cooking oil, then add rock sugar,  when the sugar starts to brown, add hot water. Then pour the sugar water in the cooking pot. Add all the ingredients for the braise.

5. Turn on high heat to bring the content of the cooking pot to boiling point, and then turn to medium heat. Keep turning the duck during the process until the duck is fully cooked, about 60 minutes.

6. Take out duck and let it cool.

7. To make the sauce, scoop 2 cup of the braising sauce from the cooking pot to a smaller sauce pan, add ingredients for the serving sauce, simmer until it because thick sauce. Pour the sauce over duck.

8. When the duck is cool. Cut and serve.