Chinese cuisine

Medium

Braised Duck With Konnyaku Jelly

Chef Chen Yichun

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– mo yu shao ya

Konnyaku yam jelly, known as mo yu in Chinese, is a Sichuanese speciality. It has a strong odor, which is why it is usually blanched before cooking. This dish is salty, savory, spicy, and fragrant.

Recipe

PRE TIME: 15 min

COOKING TIME: 30 min

TOTAL TIME: 45 min

2 SERVING

Ingredients:

1 whole Duck (about 2lb / 900g)
9 oz. Konnyaku yam jelly
1 oz. Fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1 oz. Fresh garlic, peeled and sliced
1 stalk Baby leek
33 oz. Chicken broth
0.5 tbsp. Jasmine tea (to taste)
1 small cloth bag
5 tbsp. oil
Sauce
3 oz. Pixian bean paste
1 pinch Sichuan peppercorns (to taste)
0.5 tbsp. Salt
1 tbsp. Shaoxing wine
1 tbsp. Soy sauce
1 tsp. Water + starch slurry

Directions:

Step 1

Cut the duck, on the bone, into chunks about 5 x 2cm (2 x 0.75 inch).

Step 2

Cut the konnyaku yam jelly into strips of a similar size.

Step 3

Dice the baby leek into 2-inch (5 cm) long pieces.

Step 4

Slice the ginger and garlic.

Step 5

Bring a panful of water to the boil, add the bag filled with jasmine tea, and blanch the konnyaku pieces for one minute. Place them into a bowlful of hot water with a bag of tea, and cook for 2 - 3 minutes. Drain, soak them in warm water, and set aside.

Step 6

Season the wok, then add 2 tbsp of oil and heat over a high flame until smoking. Add all the duck and stir-fry over a high flame for 4-5 minutes, until the pieces have begun to brown and smell delicious. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Step 7

Return the wok to the stove and heat another 3 tbsp of oil over a medium flame. When the oil is hot, add the Pixian bean paste and the Sichuan peppercorn and stir-fry for 20-30 seconds until the oil is red and richly fragrant. Pour in the stock and bring to a fast boil. Skim the liquid if necessary and remove the solid pieces of chili and Sichuan pepper with a perforated spoon (they have lent their flavors to the oil and stock and can now be discarded).

Step 8

Add the duck, ginger, garlic, baby leeks, salt, Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and the soaked konnyaku strips. Return to the boil and then turn the heat down and simmer for 30 minutes until the duck is tender.

Step 9

When the duck is ready, add the leeks to the sauce and simmer for another minute or so until they are just tender.

Step 10

Finally, add just enough cornstarch mixture to give the sauce a nice gravy-like consistency – add it in a couple of stages, stirring briskly as the liquid thickens, so you don't add more than you need.

Step 11

Serve.

Final Notes

Konnyaku yam, known as mo yu in Chinese, is a Sichuanese specialty. This pale root vegetable is dried and ground to a fine flour, before being boiled up with water and set into a kind of jelly. It has a strong odor, which is why it is usually blanched before cooking.