Duck braised with dracontomelon is a specialty dish and favored by many in the North of Vietnam.

Chi: Welcome to VOV24/7’s Food Delight with recipes and cooking tips. I’m Kim Chi, your host.

Today, let’s join a class at EZCooking, a well-known cooking center in Hanoi to learn how to cook a specialty dish, duck braised with dracontomelon.

Duck braised with dracontomelon is best, of course, in the dracontomelon season from June to September. But don’t worry. You can enjoy the dish all year round, as dracontomelon can be stored in the fridge for a long time.

Today, chef Chu Anh Tiep of EZcooking will teach us how to make the dish.

Chef: Duck braised with dracontomelon can be made in different ways. In the past, the duck was roasted first, and then braised with dracontomelon. Another way is to cook duck using tom yum paste which gives you a mixed flavor combining galangal, lemongrass, chilli and sour flavor. Duck can also be cooked with coconut water and coconut paste as people in the southern region do.

Chi: Duck can be made in several ways. Today, chef Tiep will show us how to make duck braised with dracontomelon with tom yum. The main ingredient is duck, so first we must know how to choose the best duck for the dish.

Chef: When selecting the duck to braise with dracontomelon, you should choose ducks which have grown up, not too young or too old. You shouldn’t select young ducks because the meat will be flabby. Press the flesh. It is necessary to choose the one with tender and meaty breast with firm skin. Chop the duck into bite-size pieces. Clean the duck with boiling water and salt to remove the poultry smell and let the meat dry.

Chi: The flavorings for the dish include: dracontomelon, lemongrass, garlic, fish sauce, sugar, cooking oil, and pepper.

Chef: First, heat the oil in a pan. Crush and chop garlic and lemongrass. Stir-fry until they turn brown, put the duck meat into the pot, add seasoning, fish sauce, a little sugar and pepper. Stir the duck over high heat.

Shave off the hard outer peel of about 10 dracontomelons and put them into the pot. Add a teaspoon of tom yum to enhance the flavor, and finally add some water.

Chi: Should I add cold or boiling water?

Chef: For braised dishes or seafood, it is essential to pour boiling water to prevent fishy smell and keep the good color of the meat.

Chef: Be sure that the water level covers the top layer of duck. Cook the duck for around 25 to 30 minutes depending on the tenderness of the duck meat. Stew the duck over a small fire until the meat is soft.

Chi: The duck meat should be soft and the soup should have a clear, bright yellow color with a harmony of salty, sweet, sour, and spicy flavors. Tiep, could you share with us some cooking techniques when making duck braised with dracontomelon?

Chef: Duck braised with dracontomelon doesn’t look good if the broth has a dark color. To have a nice color and delicious broth, the dracontomelon for cooking should be old enough. Moreover, the lemongrass and garlic needs to be stirred well until it turns golden brown.

Chi: When the duck meat becomes tender, adjust the taste. When crushing dracontemelon, crush one by one and taste until all the salty, sweet, sour flavors balance. For an extra-special taste, add some herbs, such as spring onion and eryngium. The dish is great when served hot and eaten with rice vermicelli.

Thank you, chef Tiep. We hope to have you share more recipes in another VOV24/7 Food Delight. Good bye.

Duck braised with dracontomelon (Photo: VOV5)

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