CHINESE COOKING: This is another standard dish in traditional Chinese restaurants serving "Chiu Chow" cuisines. I had made some changes to it to make it less fatty for serving at home.

CHINESE STYLE BRAISED DUCK WITH “LO/SOY” SAUCE鹵水鴨:



1 ducking, about 4-5 lbs. in weight

¼ cup honey

1½ cups dark soy sauce

6-8 cups water

4 oz. Chinese brick sugar

3 pieces sliced fresh ginger

½ pkg. store-bought “lo” ingredients****

¼ cup Chinese “Mui Kuei Liew” or rose-wine, may use dry Shirley to substitute


garlic dipping sauce:

4 tsp. very-finely chopped garlic
2 tsp. sugar
6 tbsp. Chinese rice vinegar
½ tsp. dried chill flakes


**** “Lo/soy” sauce ingredients are available in pre-packaged form in Chinese supermarkets. If preferred, make up your own bag of spices. Use a “fish-cooking bag” available at the Chinese supermarket, or a double thickness of cheesecloth to wrap and tie the spices together. The spice mix: 3 pieces dried tangerine peel, 2 to 3 star anise pods, 1 tsp. black peppercorns, 2 tsp. Sichuan peppercorns, 1 tbsp. fennel seeds, 1 tsp. clove & a 5 x 2-inch cinnamon stick, broken up. ****


Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. place duck on a rack in the roasting pan. Add about 1-inch water in the pan. Roast duck for 20-25 minutes to rid the skin of much of its fat. Remove from oven, brush skin all over with honey and let stand 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the soy sauce, 6 cups water, brick sugar and ginger in a large heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally to dissolve sugar. Put lo/soy ingredients--either home-made or store bought--into a clean muslin bag or “fish-cooking” bag and drop the bag into the boiling liquid. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes. Add wine and taste for saltiness, adding a little salt if needed, or extra sugar and water to suit personal taste. Bring sauce back to a gentle boil again and add the duck, breast side up. Make sure the duck is completely immersed in the sauce. Cover pot and simmer very gently for 30-45 minutes, or until tested done.

Remove pan from heat, turn duck over to breast side down and let it stand in the sauce for 30 minutes. Turn over to soak the other side for another 30 minutes.

Mix dipping sauce ingredients together, dissolving sugar and adding extra boiled water if necessary to adjust for taste. Carve duck into serving pieces. Pour over some lo sauce and serve with dipping sauce on the side.