Make this Peking duck and slaw-topped rice bowl for date night, or any evening that calls for impressive eats

When we hear the words ‘rice bowl’, our minds likely drift to a certain special meal at a secluded Japanese spot, or all the quick-fix dishes we’ve cobbled together on busy weeknights, but this recipe from the new cookbook Vancouver Eats: Signature Recipes from the City’s Best Restaurants is neither of those things. Straight off the menu at Heritage Asian Eatery, this umami-rich dish combines two different types of Peking duck (yes, two!), fresh, zesty slaw and marinated eggs for a souped-up spin on a comforting classic. Make it for your next date night, dinner party, or any occasion that calls for elevated eats.

Heritage Duck Rice Bowl

By Felix Zhou

Plan to start this dish a couple of days before you intend to serve it. The steps aren’t hard, but the duck does need time to cure, confit and marinate. It’s worth it though for the layers upon layers of umami-rich flavour.

Ingredients

Peking sauce:

• 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
• 1 tbsp finely chopped garlic
• 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 green onion, finely chopped
• ½ tsp rice vinegar
• ½ tsp granulated sugar

Duck:

• 1 (5-lb) whole duck
• ½ cup kosher salt
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp ground white pepper
• 1 tbsp five-spice powder
• 3 to 4 cups melted duck fat
• Watercress, for garnish (optional)

Yuzu coleslaw:

• ½ cup canola oil
• 3 tbsp yuzu juice (available at Asian grocery stores)
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• ½ cabbage, thinly sliced
• 1 carrot, cut into matchsticks
• 1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
• 4 radishes, thinly sliced

Marinated egg:

• 4 large eggs, chilled
• 6 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mirin

Rice:

• 1 cup short-, medium- or long-grain white rice
• 1 ½ cups water (or as rice-cooker instructions or package directions suggest)

Preparation

For the Peking sauce:

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk. Set aside half for glazing and half for duck marinade.

For the duck:

To prepare duck, cut into skin between thigh and breast. Pull leg down away from the body and pop it out of the joint. Cut through any attached skin to remove leg. Repeat on the other side.

To remove breasts, run knife down one side of the breast bone. Then, keeping your knife as close to the bone as possible, use stroking movements to remove meat from rib cage. Repeat for other breast. Cover duck breast in half of the Peking sauce and marinate in fridge overnight.
Combine salt, sugar, white pepper and five-spice powder in a small bowl and mix well. Rub mixture over duck  legs and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, finish the duck. Preheat oven to 325°F.

Rinse duck legs under cold running water, then pat dry. Place duck legs in a small, deep baking dish and pour in fat, making sure legs are well coated. Bake for 2 hours, until tender. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Shred the meat and mix with remaining half of the Peking sauce. Reserve duck fat for another use.

Increase the oven temperature to 500°f. Wipe the marinated duck breasts dry with paper towel. Place in a roasting pan and roast for 16 minutes. Let rest for 15 minutes.

For the yuzu coleslaw:

Whisk oil, yuzu juice and mustard in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl, combine all vegetables and dressing and toss. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

For the marinated egg:

Place eggs in a saucepan and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and boil for 8 minutes. Drain, then transfer to a bowl of ice water.

Once chilled, peel the eggs and marinate in water, soy sauce and mirin for 6 hours.

For the rice:

Place the rice in a colander and rinse under cold running water, until water runs clear.

Add rice and water to a rice cooker and cook until tender. (Alternatively, place in a saucepan and bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the type of rice.)

Let rice rest for 10 to 15 minutes, covered (to prevent rice from becoming overly sticky or mushy). Use a wooden spatula to fluff the rice.

For assembly:

Divide warm rice between 4 bowls, then top each with yuzu coleslaw and duck confit. Slice duck breast and add to each bowl. Halve the marinated eggs and add 2 egg halves to each bowl. Garnish with a few sprigs of watercress (if using).

Excerpted from Vancouver Eats: Signature Recipes from the City’s Best Restaurants by Joanne Sasvari. Copyright © 2018 Joanne Sasvari. Recipes copyright © 2018 by individual restaurants. Published by Figure 1 Publishing Inc. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.