Braised Duck (卤鸭)

You have to reduce the ingredient if using less than a duck.  You can also do it with just duck tigh or legs if you can get parts in supermarket (usually you have to buy the whole duck).  Wings also turn out very nice when briased.  Also add in duck gizzard if you like them.  

Ingredients

1. 1 duck (or half or quarter)
2. 8 tablespoon dark soya sauce
3. 4 tablespoon light soya sauce
4. 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
5. 4 tablespoon sugar
6. 4 cm section of ginger
7. 8 clove garlic
8. 1 liter water
9. 1 to 2 Star Anise (八角, ba jiao, bak kok)  – optional 
10. 4 tablespoon oil

Method

1. Scrape off skin of ginger, and cut into slices. Peel garlic, and chop into chucks.  Wash duck and drain dry.
2. Heat up a wok, add oil ginger and garlic, stir till fragrant.  Add in sugar, and stir slightly caramelize.  Put the duck in with skin on the wok, to scald the skin with the hot oil and caramel. Turn it around till all sides are scalded. Pour in dark and light soya sauce, and continue the scalding process by turning it around for 3-5 mins, until soya sauce fragrance comes out.
3. Pour in water, and salt. Add in the star anise.
4. Cover and let it simmer in very low heat for 30 mins, turn it around and simmer for another 30 mins, and turn it around and another 20 mins. 
5. Turn it around and simmer the final 20 mins.  You can add dried bean curd (tau pok)  or hard boiled egg (shell removed) and braise together.
6. Watch the water gravy level during cooking, you should use low heat so that it don’t dry up too fast. 
7. Remove the duck from the gravy, and leave it to cool, and cut into smaller pieces with cleaver to be served.
8. Serve with white rice, with the gravy.