Duck dizzi - two ways

Shane gives a modernist touch to a classic Tehrani dish, fusing Middle Eastern and Asian flavours in a rice noodle soup, followed by a Middle Eastern-style sang choy bow.

• serves

  6

• prep

  40 minutes

• cook

  3 hours

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

First course

• 200 g baby or chat potatoes
• 150 g shelled fresh borlotti beans
• 400 g rice noodles
• 3 vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered 
• 40 g ginger, finely shredded
• 2 tbsp goji berries, soaked in cold water for 3 hours, drained
• 2 tbsp barberries, soaked in cold water for 3 hours, drained
• 2 tbsp fried shallots
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
• candied orange peel
• splash of  fish sauce

To serve

• mint leaves
• Vietnamese mint leaves
• coriander leaves 
• micro lemon balm
• micro purple basil
• micro shiso leaf

Candied orange

• 3 oranges
• 2 tsp black Aleppo pepper
• 2 tsp brown sugar

Soy and pomegranate roasted cashews

• 150 g cashew nuts, blanched 
• 70 ml light soy sauce
• 40 ml pomegranate molasses

Consommé

• 1 kg duck bones
• 3 litres duck stock
• 4 duck marylands
• 1 lemongrass stalk, bruised, roughly chopped
• 100 g galangal, roughly sliced
• 2 bird’s eye chillies, halved
• 50 g ginger, sliced
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 French shallots, peeled, chopped
• 6 green cardamom pods, bruised
• 4 star anise
• 1 garlic head, halved 
• 1 bunch coriander roots

Shallot and chilli pickle

• 100 ml cabernet vinegar
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 5 shallots, finely chopped
• 3 bird’s eye chillies, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
• olive oil

Second course

• 2 heads baby iceberg lettuce, leaves separated
• micro basil
• micro shisho  
• ½ bunch coriander leaves
• 1 bunch mint leaves
• ½ bunch Vietnamese mint leaves

You will need to begin this recipe 1 day ahead.

Instructions

To make the candied orange rind, line a dehydrator tray with baking paper. Remove the rind of the oranges using a citrus zester. Combine the orange zest, Aleppo pepper and sugar. Arrange the rind mixture in a single layer in the dehydrator and cook at 60°C for 2–3 hours or until completely dry. Alternatively, combine rind and spices on an oven tray and place in the oven. Set the oven to pilot or lowest temperature possible. Cooking time will depend on what is the lowest setting of your oven; it could be anything from 2–3 hours. Once dry store in an airtight container until required.

To make the soy and pomegranate roasted cashews, preheat the oven to 150°C. Place cashews in a baking tray and pour the combined soy and molasses over the cashews. Roast, stirring every 5 minutes, for 20–25 minutes or until golden and cooked through. (You will need to try the nuts for doneness as the colour can be deceptive.) Allow to cool and set aside.

To make the duck consume, increase the oven to 200°C. Place the duck bones in a deep oven tray and roast for 25–30 minutes or until golden.

Meanwhile, combine the remaining consommé ingredients in a large stockpot and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and skim the surface to remove impurities. Add the baby potatoes to the stock and cook for 20–25 minutes or until tender. Remove and set aside.

Place the borlotti beans in a shallow colander small enough to fit inside the stockpot. Place the colander into the stock and cook beans for 15–20 minutes or until tender. Remove the beans, drain, and set aside. Add the roasted duck bones to the stock and simmer gently, skimming surface occasionally, for 2–3 hours or until richly flavoured and reduced by about half. Remove the duck legs and set aside, then strain the stock through a fine sieve. Discard solids. Return the stock to the boil when ready to serve, reserve 250 ml (1 cup).

While the stock is cooking, prepare the shallot and chilli pickle. Combine the cabernet vinegar and brown sugar in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour over the vinegar. Mix to combine and set aside until required.

To serve the first course, bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the rice noodles and cook for 2–3 minutes or until tender. Drain and rinse under cold water, drain again. Remove the seeds from the tomatoes and using a sharp knife, slice the flesh away from the skin. Finely slice the tomato flesh lengthways. Add the tomatoes, ginger and a handful of cooked borlotti beans to the noodles. Add the goji berries, barberries, fried shallots, sesame seeds and the candied orange peel. Season with fish sauce and toss gently to combine.

Combine the herbs and place in a bowl in the centre of the table, along with the soy roasted cashews and shallot and chilli pickle.

Divide the noodles between bowls and fill with hot, strained stock. Each diner can add the garnishes to suit their own tastes.

To prepare the second course, once the duck legs are cool enough to handle, strip the meat from the bones. In a mortar and pestle, pound the duck leg meat, cooked potatoes, remaining borlotti beans, a pinch of salt and some hot duck stock together to form a thick paste.

Spoon a generous amount of the paste into each lettuce cup and top with a drizzle of pickled chillies and shallots and a few roasted cashews. Garnish with herbs and serve immediately.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.