1) To do this dish, you'll need a nice knife and kitchen shears. These are the freakishly expensive pairs I bought from Shanghai Street -- but dude, I really don't see that much of a difference to the cheap made-in-China ones my mom bought from Sogo's bargain sale. Blah...
2) Duck await in my ER. I must add it seems quite well-built as a duck just defrosted... but that's about to change.
3) Here you see what we Chinese called the "case" of duck. Must confess the whole boning process makes me feel like a necrophilia - one that stick it in the wrong hole no less. It kinda grossed me out. But I make it through at the "end" and realize there's still light at the 'end" of the tunnel... Holding up the bloody backbone of a duck to yell yada yada is not glorious even by my standard. But hey, fuck me. I did it. In one hour.
4) See, my duckie seems quite handsome after all this. Hey duckie, did anyone tell you that you're dropdead gorgeous?! Note how its ass is gone as someone accidentally cut it. Fuck me, I ain't no Martha Stewart...
5) Soak it in special soy sauce for 24 hours. One side first overnight and then flip it in the morning. Now the color of it is much accessable/relatable (note: showbiz jargon I learned from Glee and Family Guy respectively... you know, just need to throw out these TV lingo every now and then for a celebrity chef) for foodies.
6) Next we need to take of the "treasures". Clockwise from top left: Mushroom, coix seed, dried scallop, dried shrimps, Chinese ham julienne and ginko nut. But there's only 6! Where's the rest?!
7) The salt egg. Note how small the yolk is. The breeding plan of this duck farm officially sucks.
8) But we'll only use the yolk, as the seventh "treasure" inside the duckie. It adds the smoky flavor to the dish.
9) Fry it up, add some water to make them mash up well and tender for the mouth.
10) This will be the picture for the cover of my new book: Duckenstein. It's about a mad scientist who's been secretly trying to notch the evolution phase of mankind in his basement (but apparently he lacks funding support and human corpses so he has to make do with that of ducks'). I totally see the potential for a movie adaptation coming out of it. I swear. Okay, the mad scientist even fries up his duckenstein for half an hour to add it a nice glow...
11) Duckie, you looks so in shape after 2 hours of sauna steam. Daddy's gonna glaze you up with the leftover soy sauce. Halo, halo. Oh shiot, I forget to pluck out one of the toothpicks I used to fasten the legs. Don't hate on me, don't hate...
12) Cut it in half. Nice 8-treasure duck can be cut effortless. Note to self: need to buy a bigger duck next time. This one holds barely a mouthful of fillings in... But anyway, happy anniversary L, I hope you like it.
