For the longest time, I believed my loyalty would at all times be to basic Chinese language roasted duck—till a life-changing lunch at Might Flower Restaurant in San Jose, CA. Their tea-smoked duck arrived on a platter, neatly reduce and reassembled. The pores and skin was glistening and crisp, the meat pink and tender, with simply sufficient smoky depth to really feel novel, however nonetheless comfortingly Chinese language. Not like roasted duck, it did not depart a lingering fatty mouthfeel that begged to be chased with sizzling tea.

That meal caught with me. However on the time, I used to be a newly minted mom, wrapped within the fog of early parenthood, and the concept of recreating that duck at residence felt like a far-off fantasy.

Years later, on a summer time journey to Japan, I had an unforgettable smoked sashimi tuna at Ichiu in Tokyo—this was stunning since I do not even usually like uncooked tuna. That have reignited one thing in me: Days after I obtained residence, I purchased a donabe smoker and commenced experimenting with greens, eggs, seafood, and even fruit.

Ultimately, my reminiscence of that Might Flower smoked duck resurfaced. I needed to recreate it. The end result was…shut, however by no means fairly proper. Perhaps nostalgia made the goalpost transfer. Or maybe I wanted to dig deeper. Now, after years of tinkering and loads of trial and error, I’ve landed on a model of tea-smoked duck that captures the spirit of that Might Flower meal whereas staying doable in a house kitchen.

A Sichuan Traditional, with a Smoky Twist

To know what makes tea-smoked duck so particular—and why recreating it at residence is not any small feat—it helps to know the place it comes from and the way it advanced.

Tea-smoked duck (zhang cha ya) is certainly one of Sichuan’s most celebrated dishes, recognized for its layered preparation: A marinated entire duck is steamed, then smoked over tea leaves, then deep-fried to crisp the pores and skin. Traditionally, smoked meats helped Chinese language households survive lengthy winters. At the moment, tea-smoked duck seems on banquet tables and particular events, much less so in residence kitchens.

The dish’s fashionable recognition started with Zhang Guoliang, who opened a duck stall in 1928 close to a Chengdu alley referred to as “the mousehole,” a hotspot for teahouses and wine retailers. A restaurant bearing his title—Mr. Zhang’s Mousehole Duck—nonetheless operates right this moment.

The title “zhang cha ya” is commonly mistranslated as “camphor and tea-smoked duck,” probably because of the homophone “zhang” for camphor. Nevertheless, as cookbook writer Fuchsia Dunlop notes in her e-book The Meals of Sichuan, many specialists imagine the dish’s origins lie in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, the place duck was smoked over tea leaves—methods seemingly launched to Sichuan by cooks like Huang Jinlin, who popularized it at Auntie’s Feast restaurant.

Making This Complicated Dish Extra Approachable

Historically, tea-smoked duck is made with a complete hen and entails steaming and deep-frying. To simplify issues for the house prepare dinner, I developed a model utilizing boneless duck breasts, with choices for a stovetop wok-smoking methodology or grill-smoking methodology, completed with a remaining sear to make sure crisp pores and skin. I additionally drew on Fuchsia Dunlop’s experience from her e-book and performed brining and smoking experiments to refine the approach and produce the dish throughout the attain of a house prepare dinner.

Two Paths to Taste: Dry Brine or Moist Marinade

In relation to curing duck for tea-smoking, there is not only one “proper” means. In Sichuan, cooks typically favor a dry brine—a easy rub of spices, salt, and a small quantity of Shaoxing wine that seasons the meat whereas drawing out extra moisture. It is simple, conventional, and has the bonus of serving to the pores and skin crisp up superbly later.

However there’s one other path: a moist marinade. By simmering soy sauce, spices, sugar, and wine right into a seasoned broth, you get a remedy that imparts layers of candy, salty, and fragrant taste to the duck, whereas the acidity of the moist brine tenderizes the meat. After I was testing my recipe, my tasters typically gravitated towards the marinated model for its tenderness and delicate sweetness.

So which do you have to select? The dry brine yields a firmer texture and a rosier colour (particularly should you use the elective pink curing salt), with flavors that lean in direction of peppery and savory. The moist marinade offers you a deeper perfume, a softer texture (from the acidity within the marinade), and a extra pronounced sweet-salty profile. Neither is healthier—they’re merely totally different interpretations of the identical dish.

I’ve included each choices right here as a result of they showcase the vary inside tea-smoked duck. Whether or not you need the crisper, extra conventional character of the dry brine or the plush, flavor-packed qualities of the moist marinade, each roads result in a worthy finish: smoky, tender duck with simply the best steadiness of richness and restraint.

Selecting the Smoking Elements

The smoking substances make or break this dish. Former Severe Eats editor Kenji Lopez-Alt and contributor Tim Chin wrote an intensive information on wok smoking, together with an extended checklist of substances used for smoking. Everybody has their favourite mixture. Dunlop makes use of almond and peanut shells, cypress clippings, and jasmine tea; meals author and chef Kian Lam Kho favors tea leaves and tangerine peel; and different recipes use flour or starch to maintain sugar from sticking.

I opted for a easy combination of white rice, inexperienced tea leaves, and brown sugar, skipping wooden chips to keep away from overpowering the fragile tea perfume. The rice lends perfume, tea provides complexity, and sugar helps with caramelization. My favourite teas for smoking are lapsang souchong and hojicha, as a result of their wealthy and toasty taste profiles.

Unfastened-leaf tea is important—keep away from teabags, which burn too shortly. In the event you’re inquisitive about including wooden, go along with delicate sorts like apple, cherry, or oak.

Smoking Duck in a Wok

If you do not have a smoker or a grill, the wok is your finest pal for this and different smoking recipes. It is compact, versatile, and surprisingly sensible at infusing smoke.

This is the setup: Line a wok with foil, pile your smoking substances within the heart, and high with a wire rack. As soon as smoke seems (about two minutes over medium-high warmth), add the duck breasts, skin-side up, cowl, and decrease the warmth. For me, 12–14 minutes introduced the inner temp to 133°F—good for medium-rare. After smoking, the duck shall be flavorful however pale in colour, so I name for a short sear in a forged iron pan to deepen its taste and crisp up the pores and skin. Wok-smoking is wildly efficient at creating wealthy, advanced taste—with out the majority of a grill or the effort of a smoker. With simply foil, tea, and somewhat persistence, the common-or-garden wok transforms duck into one thing transcendent.

Smoking on a Grill

If you do not have a wok or just favor the grill, you possibly can smoke on any charcoal grill. Use a two-zone setup: coals on one facet, duck on the opposite. To maintain your smoking packet from burning too shortly, wrap your tea/rice/sugar combination in foil and slit the highest to let the smoke escape.

Maintain the grill temperature round 320°F. My duck hit 133°F after quarter-hour. I attempted crisping the pores and skin immediately over the coals, however the fats precipitated flare-ups and uneven char. Searing in a forged iron pan—the identical means you’ll for wok-smoked duck—labored much better for even browning and that signature crunch.

Serving Tea-Smoked Duck

There isn’t any single proper approach to serve tea-smoked duck. In her e-book, Dunlop notes she’s seen it served chilly as an appetizer or stir-fried with younger ginger. In Chengdu, it is rolled in lotus leaf pancakes. At San Tung restaurant in San Francisco, it comes with bao buns. My private favourite? Szechwan Kitchen in Covina, CA, which serves it with tongue-tingling Sichuan pepper for a punchy distinction to the smoke.

This recipe offers you taste choices and two smoking strategies, any mixture of which can result in a memorable dish. As soon as you have obtained the fundamentals down, riff on the aromatics, play along with your favourite teas, or sneak in some fruitwood chips, and even strive tea smoking with different meats. Tea-smoked duck epitomizes Sichuan ingenuity, layering dry or moist flavorings, tea, and smoke right into a dish that is candy, salty, umami-rich, irresistibly smoky, and a lot greater than the sum of its elements.

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