Turn Barbecue Grill Into Oven For Excellent Peking Duck

While I generally associate Peking duck with fancy restaurants, it was a casual grill joint in Macao that served me a duck I’ll never forget.

Lam Yam Wing is run by four Chinese-Macanese brothers. The focal point of the restaurant is the grill, which is almost the length of a bowling lane. Chickens (with heads still intact) turn slowly on spits; fish sizzle on charcoal-fired gridirons.

The pride of the house is the Peking duck, which has been brushed with honey and roasted to the color of mahogany. The waiter carves the skin into crackling crisp shards, which are served on silver dollar-size green onion pancakes.

To achieve this remarkable crispness and succulence, the Wing brothers use an intricate process of drying, boiling, frying and grilling the duck. They could have saved themselves a lot of trouble. Cooking duck in a covered barbecue grill using the indirect method produces a similar flavor and texture - with a lot less work.

Indirect grilling is a process whereby you turn your grill into a sort of oven. With a charcoal grill, the coals are placed on the sides or periphery of the grill, the food in the center. With a gas grill, the burners on one side (or the front and back of the grill) are lit and the food is placed over the non-lit burner.

Here, then, is a not strictly traditional, but easy and tasty, Peking-style duck cooked on the grill. I’m sure the brothers Wing would approve.

Peking-Style Duck on the Grill

Don’t be intimidated by the length of this recipe; this is the easiest Peking duck you’ll ever make. For the best results, you’ll need to start a day early to allow the duck skin to dry out overnight in the refrigerator.

1 (5-pound) duck, thawed

Salt, freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

1 clove garlic

4 green onions, cut into green and white sections (save white part for onion brushes)

2 thin slices fresh ginger

Basting mixture:

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

Table sauce:

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

3 tablespoons rice wine or sake

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

For serving:

12 Peking pancakes or flour tortillas

4 green onion brushes (see note)

The day before serving, wash thawed duck and blot dry inside and out. Place in roasting pan and leave uncovered in refrigerator overnight to dry out skin.

The next day, prepare grill for indirect cooking. If using charcoal grill, ignite coals; when red and ash-covered, transfer coals to side baskets (if your grill has them) or rake into 2 piles at opposite sides of grill. Place drip pan in center. If using gas grill, light front and rear burners, leaving center burner off. (Or light burner on right side, leaving left side off.) Place drip pan on unheated portion of grill. Preheat grill to 350 degrees (medium heat).

Season duck cavity with salt, pepper and 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder. Place garlic, onion greens and ginger slices in cavity. Turn duck over on its breast (back side up). Using tip of paring knife, make 2 small slits in fatty part under wings and 2 small slits under thighs; don’t pierce meat. Lightly pierce duck skin all over with fork, but don’t pierce meat. (Slits and fork holes allow fat to drain off, crisping skin.) Season outside of duck with remaining 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder, salt and pepper.

Place duck on rack (breast side up) over drip pan and cover grill. Cook 1-1/2 hours. (If using charcoal grill, you’ll need to add fresh coals every hour.) Turn bird on its end to drain off any juices that accumulate in cavity. Re-pierce skin with fork and make fresh slits under wings and thighs to encourage fat to drain.

Meanwhile, to prepare basting mixture, stir together honey, soy sauce and rice vinegar in small bowl.

To prepare table sauce, combine hoisin sauce, rice wine, honey, soy sauce, garlic and ginger in saucepan. Gently simmer until well-flavored and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Pour into 4 small bowls.

Baste duck with basting mixture. Continue cooking duck until skin is mahogany brown and crackling crisp, and meat is cooked through and tender, another 30 to 60 minutes (2 to 2-1/2 hours total cooking time). Baste duck 2 to 3 times more with basting mixture.

Just before serving, warm Peking pancakes or tortillas on grill or in oven. Transfer duck to platter. Present it to your guests. Then, using sharp knife, carve skin and meat off bones. (You may want to do this in the kitchen.)

Arrange duck meat and skin on 1 platter, the Peking pancakes or tortillas and green onion brushes on another. Have each guest brush a pancake or tortilla with sauce, using an onion brush. Place slice of duck skin and meat on pancake and roll it into a cone for eating.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 552 calories, 43 grams fat (70 percent fat calories), 15 grams protein, 25 grams carbohydrate, 78 milligrams cholesterol, 403 milligrams sodium.

Note: To make green onion brushes, cut roots and green tops off onions to obtain a 3-inch section of onion white. Make a series of 1-inch lengthwise cuts in each end, gradually rotating onion to form the individual “bristles” of the brush. Soak onions in bowl of ice water for a couple of hours to swell ends of brushes.