Lapsang Souchong Smoked Duck...Lapsang Souchong Smoked Duck Breast with Spiced Mandarin Reduction and Kabocha Silk

A refined modern Asian composition featuring tender, crisp-skinned duck breast cold-smoked over Lapsang Souchong tea and star anise, accompanied by a velvet kabocha squash purée, charred gai lan, and a glossy mandarin-Shaoxing reduction.

Ingredients

Cooking Instructions

1. 01

   Prepare the wok-smoker: Line the base of a heavy wok with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Combine the Lapsang Souchong tea, jasmine rice, brown sugar, and crushed star anise across the foil. Place a round wire rack 3 inches above the mixture.

2. 02

   Lightly season duck breasts with fine sea salt. Heat the wok over high flame until fragrant wisps of white smoke begin to roll. Set the duck breasts on the rack skin-side up, seal tightly with a domed lid, extinguish the heat, and smoke off-heat for 8 minutes to perfume the fat.

3. 03

   Simmer the diced kabocha in dashi with a pinch of salt until fork-tender (approx. 12 minutes). Transfer to a high-speed blender with 20g of cold butter and blitz until mirror-smooth. Pass through a fine chinois; adjust seasoning and keep warm.

4. 04

   In a small copper saucier, combine mandarin juice, zest, Shaoxing wine, dark soy sauce, and ground Sichuan peppercorn. Reduce over medium heat until glossy and syrupy (reduced to roughly 45ml). Whisk in 20g of chilled butter off heat to emulsify into a velvet glaze.

5. 05

   Place the smoked duck breasts skin-side down in a cold dry cast-iron skillet. Turn heat to medium-low to gently render fat for 10-12 minutes until the skin turns paper-thin and deeply lacquered mahogany. Flip and sear the meat side for 90 seconds until medium-rare (internal temp 54°C / 129°F). Rest on a warm carving board for 6 minutes.

6. 06

   Char the blanched gai lan stalks in the residual duck fat for 1-2 minutes until blistered with a touch of smokiness, glazing lightly with remaining butter.

7. 07

   Carve each duck breast on a bias into neat slices. Plate with an arc of warm kabocha silk, rest the sliced duck beside charred gai lan, ribbon the spiced mandarin reduction around the plate, and finish with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.