ep. 2: tea-smoked duck bou jai faan for Chris Tse
blood + bones + fire = claypot rice for Chris Tse
SERVES: 1–2
PREP TIME: 60 mins + 24 hrs brining
COOKING TIME: 25–30 mins
this was one of the very first recipes i developed for served with rice. after reading Chris’ poetry collection ‘Super Model Minority’, themes and words that kept coming up were bones, blood, and fire. with his Hong Kong heritage, i wanted to make a dish that really encapsulated these things — and so I came to bou jai faan or claypot rice, a beloved dish in Hong Kong, eaten when the weather is cool, hugely customisable, and prized for the faan jiu (the crispy layer of rice at the bottom of the pot).
for the “bones” aspect, i made a collagen-rich duck and chicken bone broth which i used to cook the rice in place of traditional water, for the “fire”, i decided to tea-smoke duck breast with smokey lapsang souchong (another popular Chinese cooking technique) and added a fiery chilli kick to the rice (very non-traditional), and for the “blood” aspect, I went with laap cheung, a preserved Chinese sausage. i wanted to use yun cheung, a preserved sausage made with duck liver, but — unfortunately — food import laws in Aotearoa meant I couldn’t get my hands on any (sob). so, laap cheung is an homage to the blood aspect, and a slightly sweet and very fine substitute.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT
small Chinese claypot or Japanese ceramic nabe
large wok with lid
cast iron pan
gas stove
INGREDIENTS
for the duck:
1 medium skin-on, boneless duck breast (roughly 200–225g)
for the wet brine:
120ml soy sauce
120 ml Shaoxing wine
80g caster sugar
1 cinnamon stick, broken into small pieces
4 star anise pods
2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
1 tsp kosher salt or ½ tsp table salt
for smoking:
25g loose leaf lapsang souchong tea
30g brown sugar
30g uncooked white Jasmine rice
for the claypot rice:
200g uncooked white Jasmine rice, washed
220g duck bone broth or water
1 link laap cheung Chinese sausage, rinsed, soaked in boiling water, and sliced diagonally
½ Thai red chilli, deseeded and finely minced
2cm piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into rounds
½ shallot, finely minced
2 tsp duck fat (separated) + 1 tbsp duck fat (separated)
1 spring onion, finely sliced on the diagonal (for garnish)
for the shiitake mushrooms:
3 whole, dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated for 10 mins in boiling water, stalks removed, and sliced into 3 pieces
½ tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp caster sugar
½ tsp cornflour
for the serving sauce:
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp caster sugar
METHOD
to wet brine the duck:
using a sharp knife, carefully score the skin of the duck breast in a diamond pattern (about ½ cm apart) — be careful not to cut through to the flesh.
combine the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, sugar, cinnamon, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. once boiling, reduce to a simmer and allow to infuse for 5 mins. transfer to a heat-proof container (choose one with an air-tight lid) and allow to cool to room temperature.
once the wet brine has cooled sufficiently, add the duck breast (making sure it’s submerged), put the lid on and refrigerate for 24 hours.
to smoke the duck:
when ready to smoke the duck, combine the tea leaves, sugar, and rice in a small bowl, and line the bottom of your wok with sturdy tin foil (leave a 2cm allowance beyond the rim).
pour the tea leaf mixture into the centre of the foil and spread it evenly on the bottom of the wok, then place a circular metal wire rack on top. Place the lid on, turn the heat to medium-high, and heat until a wisp of smoke appears beneath the lid (roughly 2 mins).
remove the lid and place the duck breast on the wire rack, skin-side up, then put the lid back on and reduce heat to medium. smoke until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the duck breast reads 56ºC (roughly 12 mins, but duck will continue cooking after you remove it from the smoker, so check a few mins before), then remove and set aside.
using a room temp cast iron skillet, place the smoked duck breast skin-side down and place over a medium heat. when the duck skin starts to sizzle, carefully move it around, pressing down as necessary to ensure the skin gets even contact, until the skin is golden brown and has crisped up (roughly 2 mins).
remove to a chopping board and rest for 5 mins, before slicing on an angle and setting aside.
to make the claypot rice:
soak the washed rice in boiling water for 10 mins (this will speed up the cooking process), and bring your duck bone broth to the boil.
while the rice is soaking, combine your shiitake mushroom ingredients and set aside, and spread 1 tsp of liquid duck fat around the claypot. combine your sauce ingredients and set aside.
drain the rice, and mix in 1 tsp of liquid duck fat, the finely minced chilli and shallot, and slices of ginger. place in the claypot and pour the boiling duck bone broth on top, making sure everything’s mixed together — try to keep the ginger slices near the top for easier removal later.
put the lid on and, over a medium heat (best over a gas stove), bring the stock back to the boil (when working with a claypot never increase your heat above medium or you risk cracking it).
when just about boiling, uncover the pot and continue to cook until the rice has absorbed more of the broth and you can no longer see it pooling around the edges of the rice. layer the sliced Chinese sausage on one side, followed by the marinated mushrooms next to it — try to lay them out neatly without stacking too high (both for presentation and to make sure everything cooks evenly). leave a space for the duck breast (it would be smart to try to keep the sliced ginger in this space so you don’t have to fish around for it in the rice later and ruin your presentation).
put the lid back on and lower the heat, continuing to cook for 5–10 mins, or until you begin to hear a slight sizzling/crackling sound (this means the liquid has absorbed and the fat is beginning to scorch the rice).
turn the heat back up to medium and, using oven gloves or a heatproof cloth, hold the pot handle and carefully tilt the pot onto its side so that it’s closer to the gas flame. continue to tilt, move, and rotate the pot in this way for about 2 mins, ensuring you work your way around evenly to build up the scorched rice inside the pot. be sure not to open the lid during this process!
turn the heat back down to low and add 1 tbsp liquid duck fat all around the edges of the lid, allowing it to seep into the rice below without opening the lid (depending on your pot, you may need to crack it slightly so that the fat can seep down).
continue to cook over a low heat for 2 mins more, or until you hear the sizzling/cracking again, then repeat the scorching process by tilting the pot for another 2 mins. be careful not to lift the lid during this process or tip it so far the fat drips into the fire! the steam coming from the lid of the pot should smell fragrant but not burnt — if it begins to smell burnt, you’ve overscorched your rice.
when you’ve finished scorching your rice, turn off the heat and leave the lid on for 4–5 mins (to help loosen the scorched rice from the sides of the pot), then lift the lid, remove the sliced ginger (which should be near the top of the rice), and place your sliced smoked duck breast in the reserved space, then garnish with spring onion.
serve immediately, adding as little or as much of the serving sauce as you prefer. remember not to touch the pot directly as it will remain hot!
NOTES:
the smoked duck recipe is based off this recipe from Serious Eats
it took me a couple of tests to get the scorching of the rice just right. for technique, i highly recommend watching this video from Made with Lau which this claypot rice recipe is based off
this recipe is for a single-size serving pot (to share between two or one hungry person) — if your pot is larger, you’ll need to adjust your ingredients accordingly