Braised Duck Legs/滷鸭腿

The thought of having braised dishes over a bowl of rice is just so tempting. And moreover I have stocked up several duck legs over the festive season. To make braised meat with my newly acquired volcano orange Le Creuset enamelled cast iron pot seems ideal. I really like Le Creuset cast iron pot ranges, if only I could be an unofficial spoke person for Le Creuset , maybe I will be given the pots for free....one can only dream......
Le Creuset had been around since 1925, started in France and the cast iron pot is still being handmade individually by skillful artisan. I totally agrees that this product is of high quality, many serious cooks will definitely have one or more of these lovely pots in their kitchen. I've bought a cheaper cast iron pot before at a fraction of price of Le Creuset but am totally disappointed after few uses, as the enamel chipped off and became rusty. So I decided to splash a bit more for good quality stuff and a brand like Le Creuset which stand the test of time. I know in particular back home in Singapore and Malaysia, not many people own Le Creuset pot, mainly because it's quite expensive. This pot is really versatile and could last you a lifetime, so in the long run it's a good investment considering many comforting food can be churned out from this pot. And its addition to your kitchen would definitely stands out with its cheerful colors. I've my eyes on more Le Creuset ultensils like the cast iron wok, tangine, grillet, etc etc....

Braised Duck Legs/滷鸭腿
Ingredients (good for 2 persons)

• 2 duck legs (approximately 400-500 gm)
• 5 tbsp light soya sauce (*)
  
• 3 tbsp of dark soya sauce (I use Cheong Chan dark caramel)-(*)
  
• 3 tbsp sugar (*)
  
• 2 tbsp Chin Kiang black vinegar (*)
  
• 1 tbsp shaoxing wine (*)
  
• 200 ml water
• 6 big dry shitake mushroom-soaked and quartered
  
• 2 star anise
• pinchful of cloves
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 inch of ginger
• 3 hard boiled eggs or more
• 1/2 tbsp of vegetable oil
  

1. Put the duck legs into a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes to remove any blood scum and excess fat. Drained.
2. Marinate the duck leg with the (*) ingredients overnight.
3. Next day heat a pan with 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil. Once hot, add in the garlic, ginger, star anise and cloves to fry till fragant. Then add in mushroom to stir fry as well for a minute.
   
4. Then add in the marinated duck leg plus marinating juices, stir fry. Turn the heat to medium, then pour in the 200ml water and let it simmer for 5minutes. Add in the hard boiled eggs as well.
   
5. Pour everything into Le Creuset pot and on low heat cook for about 2-2.5 hrs until meat is tender and soft. Let the meat soaked up the sauces as it simmer. Remember to turn over the duck legs + eggs to coat up the sauces about every half an hour.
   
6. Granish with spring onion and served over a bowl of hot rice. The braised sauce can be kept for making braised duck noodle.

I know many of you wish for a Le Creuset pot now :-) .
And Happy New Year 2010 to all my readers ....... at least I'm not in freezing cold London to usher in 2010 :-) .