Chinese Braised Duck Legs Recipe and Video (2024)

Hawker Centre Braised Duck

In Singapore (and Malaysia), where I’m from, you’ll find braised duck very easily, sold at most hawker centres. Even these vary from stall to stall, some more savoury, while others border on the sweet.

While it is commonly acknowledged that the Singaporean braised duck is Teochew in origin, the Hokkiens also like to lay claim to it. if you didn’t know, Teochew and Hokkien are both Chinese dialects from mainland China (I was rather fluent in the latter, once upon a time). But let’s skip the cultural lesson for a change, as it’s not that relevant to the recipe, you’ll see why in a minute.

What are Hawker Centres?

They are a collection of food stalls selling a variety of dishes and can be out in the open, with or without covers, or in enclosed, air-conditioned buildings. Think streetfood stalls, just more organised; it is Singapore we’re talking about, after all.

Braised Duck Legs Recipe

Our recipe today though, isn’t really the one I grew up eating in Singapore. It is, in fact, the recipe that was taught in our Chinese cooking classes by Jenny.

You remember Jenny, I mentioned her in the Saliva Chicken recipe post; she conducted the Chinese cooking classes in my school, run out of my old kitchen.

This is the exact recipe she taught, nothing added, nothing taken away. So I can’t claim credit for it!

Make Ahead Chinese Recipe

These braised duck legs are a great make ahead dish, in fact, they taste even better the next day. It is not uncommon to serve it at room temperature either, it’ll make a great starter to a meal with some dipping sauce on the side.

Braised Duck Legs Ingredients

If you take a look at the ingredients list, you can see that most are easy-to-get ingredients, with the possible exception of the Shaoxing rice wine and Sichuan peppercorns.

Shaoxing Rice Wine

Is Chinese rice wine, made from fermented rice, and can easily be substituted with regular rice wine or dry sherry.

Don’t do alcohol? No sweat, just add a quarter tsp of regular, white vinegar for every tablespoon of rice wine, as a substitute for any recipe.

Sichuan Peppercorns

Click hereto read more.They add a sweet, musky and floral flavour to the braised duck legs. And as you bite into one, your tongue will tingle, which makes for a delightful dining experience.

If you can’t get them, leave them out, and throw half a tsp of black peppercorns, just for flavour. They are not a substitute.

How to Serve Braised Duck Legs?

• I love to serve them warm, as part of an Oriental meal.
• You can also serve them as a starter, on a bed of salad, with a dipping sauce on the side. A traditional dipping sauce is just chopped up garlic and ginger in some clear vinegar. Take a look at the Vietnamese Spring Rolls recipe for an idea on how to make your own dipping sauce.

Variations

In Singapore, some boiled eggs and puffed tofu cubes are thrown in the braising liquid after the duck is taken out, and cooked away for 20 minutes to allow them to take on the rich flavour of the braising liquid.

Jenny liked to cook off the braising liquid, until it’s a thick, rich sauce, which is also my preferred method. However, some people prefer to leave the braising liquid as it is, and reserve it for another dish.

Did I mention easy, somewhere? Shall we get our aprons on?

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