This pepper duck variety was sent by Colin from Massachusetts – thanks again! It really took me a long time to warm up to duck. I think honestly the reason being was the fact that I never had the real thing until I went to Asia. Indeed, I’ve had duck in Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan and it’s definitely been a highlight of those trips. It’s got a strong flavor which is definitely one a lot of people might not be familiar with (like myself in the past). I would say that the best term for it is rich.
Here’s a little snippet about a particular kind of duck from Wikipedia –
The duck is first marinates for several hours with a rub containing a typical combination of whole or crushed Sichuan pepper, huangjiu or baijiu (fermented or distilled Chinese wine), ginger, garlic, and salt, with much of it rubbed inside the cavity of the duck. For intensity of taste, sometimes the marinade rub has choujiu, black pepper, tea leaves, and camphor leaves. Following the marination, the duck is quickly blanched in hot water to tighten the skin, and then towel and air dried. This step ensures that the skin of the duck has a crisp texture upon completion. A wok is then prepare for smoking the duck with black tea leaves and camphor twigs and leaves. Following a smoke treatment of approximately 10–15 minutes, the duck is then steamed for another 10 minutes before being deep fried in vegetable oil until its skin is crisp.[2]
The duck is consumed wrapped in clam-shaped buns called Gua bao (割包).
So when I ate duck in Taiwan, they bring it out on a cart and carve it while a waitress gives a short speech about how amazing it is. Duck seems to be for special and auspicious occasions! Let’s give this pepper duck flavor a try.
Sau Tao Instant Noodle King Pepper Duck Soup Flavour – Hong Kong
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Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Contains fish and crustacea. To prepare, add noodle block to 600ml boiling water and cook for 90 seconds. Take off heat and add in sachet contents. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
A dry base sachet.
A powder with flecks of vegetable.
The liquid base sachet.
Thick and oily.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added spring onion, sesame chilli oil and Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts. The noodles have that nice chewy Hong Kong style to them, kind of like wonton noodles. The broth has a nice taste and just screams for duck. I mean, it begs for duck. So much so that I swear a flock of them that live in the swimming pool here started waddling this way to hop in the bowl. Authentic and tasty. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. UPC bar code 087303862740.
The Taste of Old Hong Kong: Recipes and Memories From 30 Years on the China Coast
Why can’t we have store openings like this here in the USA? Looks like a lot of fun!
