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Tea Smoked Duck

Smoked-DuckJulian Wu - Melbourne

There is a traditional Chinese dish where the duck is smoked with a mixture of tea leaves, rice and brown sugar. I've tried doing a version on my Weber with reasonably successful results. Traditionally the duck is steamed first, then smoked in a wok, then deep fried to crisp the skin, but in my version I have taken a few liberties, and give it about an hour and a half or so on the Weber, then finish it off by grilling it over the Heat Beads® coals to give a crisp finish to the skin.

Ingredients:

For the rub combine:

  • 1 tablespoon Five Spice Powder or ground Szechuan Peppe
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • 1 Duck about 1.5-2 kg

Smoking Mixture

  • ½ cup each of black tea leaves
  • brown sugar
  • raw white rice
  • 1 cinnamon stick, crumbled
  • 2 sheets of good heavy duty aluminium foil

Method:

The night before you cook - butterfly the duck, by placing it breast side down and cutting along one side of the backbone with poultry shears, then open it up and flatten it out by pressing down over the breast bone firmly with the heel of your hand.

Take the duck and give it a rinse, them dry it inside and out with a paper towel. Coat the duck on both sides with the rub and massage it into the skin and refrigerate overnight.

The next day prepare you Weber for indirect grilling. While the Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes are lighting, prepare the smoking mixture. Combine the smoking mixture ingredients and wrap in a double layer of aluminium foil. Use a fork to prick a few holes in the top of the parcel so the smoke can escape (but take care not to pierce the bottom otherwise the mixture will leak and make a mess of your barbecue) Take the duck out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature about 45 minutes before you start to cook.

Place the duck on the grill, skin side up between the two baskets of coals over a foil drip tray and place the foil packet with the smoking mixture on top of the coals and barbecue at a moderate heat for 1-1½ hours with the lid on. Test for ‘doneness’ by moving the leg around. If the duck is near ready, you will feel the leg joint begin to relax and you should be able to move the leg around freely. Take the lid off and flip the duck over so the skin side is over the Heat Beads® coals and grill for a few minutes to crisp up the skin if necessary.

In China this would be served with peppercorn salt, which is equal quantities of Szechwan peppercorns and salt toasted in a wok or fry pan then ground to a powder with a mortar and pestle.