how2heroes » Red Roast Duck w/ Baby Bok Choy

Entrees » Red Roast Duck w/ Baby Bok Choy

Ming Tsai's red roast duck is, in fact, braised and derives its special character from the use of dark soy sauce, red wine, Shaoxing wine and rock sugar. A family recipe, the duck is braised until its meat is velvety. Baby bok choy and Thai bird chiles speak to the dish’s Asian origins and ensure people who eat it will be very, very happy.

Print Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 whole head garlic, unpeeled & halved horizontally
2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise
5" piece fresh ginger, cut into ¼" slices
2 bunches scallions, white parts sliced into 2" lengths, green parts sliced ⅛" thick
2 boxes (about 3 lbs) rock sugar candy, or 2 cups dark brown sugar
1 cup dark soy sauce
3 cups soy sauce
1 bottle dry red wine
2 cups Shaoxing wine, or 1 cup dry sherry
4 cups water or more, if needed
1 large duck, about 6 lbs
4 Thai bird chiles, dried
3 baby bok choy, halved & cored
3-4 baked sweet potatoes

How-to

In a large, deep pot, combine the wines, soy sauces, about 2 cups of water, rock candy, ginger, garlic, scallion whites, star anise, Thai bird chiles and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer 5 minutes to melt rock candy
Add duck to pot. If the liquid doesn’t cover the duck so that it is completely submerged, add more water
Place a second pot or stainless steel bowl half-filled with water into the first to keep the duck submerged (see tips*) and simmer until the duck is very tender and almost falling off the bones, 2½ - 3 hours. Do not overcook, or the meat will come apart
During the last 10 minutes of cooking, add the bok choy
Mound the innards of baked, sweet potatoes onto the serving platter
Using a large-mesh spoon, carefully remove the duck and bok choy to platter atop sweet potatoes
Spoon braising liquid over duck, and garnish with scallion greens

*Ming’s Tips:

The duck must be kept submerged in its braising liquid while it cooks. To accomplish this, find a pot or stainless steel bowl that will fit into the braising pot. Fill it halfway with water and place it on the duck to weigh it down as it cooks
Don’t be put off by the amount of sugar called for for here; it’s needed to give the dish its mellow flavor
Suggested wine pairing: a full-bodied Syrah or Shiraz

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Ming Tsai

Ming Tsai was raised in Dayton, Ohio, where he spent hours cooking alongside his mother and father at their family-owned restaurant, Mandarin Kitchen. Ming attended Yale University, earning his degree in Mechanical Engineering. He spent his junior summer at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. After graduating from Yale, Ming worked in kitchens around the globe.

In 1998, Ming opened Blue Ginger in Wellesley, MA and immediately impressed diners from Boston and beyond with the restaurant's innovative East-West cuisine. In its first year, Blue Ginger received 3 stars from the Boston Globe, was named "Best New Restaurant" by Boston Magazine, was nominated by the James Beard Foundation as "Best New Restaurant 1998," and Esquire Magazine honored Ming as "Chef of the Year 1998." The James Beard Foundation crowned Ming "2002 Best Chef Northeast" and, since 2002, the Zagat Restaurant Guide has rated Blue Ginger the "2nd Most Popular Boston Restaurant." In 2007, Blue Ginger received the Ivy Award from Restaurants & Institutions for its achievement of the highest standards in food, hospitality and service, and in 2009, Ming and Blue Ginger won IFMA's Silver Plate Award in the Independent Restaurant category recognizing overall excellence in the country.

Ming is also a national spokesperson for the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN). For four years, Ming worked with Massachusetts Legislature to help write Bill S. 2701, which was recently signed into law. This groundbreaking legislation, the first of its kind in the US, requires local restaurants to comply with simple food allergy awareness guidelines.