chopped spring onions (scallions) or coriander leaves (cilantro)
Instructions
Let's prepare the aromatics
Peel the garlic but leave them whole.
Scrub the ginger clean with a vegetable brush and slice into rounds, no need to be thin.
Roughly chop the spring onions up into 3-4 lengths. Set everything aside while we brown the duck legs.
Brown the duck legs
Heat the oil in your chosen pan over medium-high heat. This is going to smoke so open those windows, turn on the hob extractor and watch out for that smoke alarm!
Brown the duck legs one side a time, about 2 minutes each side will do. Take the duck legs out and pour out all the fat from the pan. No need to wipe or clean the pan.
Let's get braising
Pour the water into the same pan and bring to a boil first.
Then add all the braising ingredients: rice wine, soy sauces, spring onions, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, star anise, sugar, sichuan peppercorns and white pepper.
Bring everything back to a boil, then add the duck legs back in, skin side down. Cover, and simmer for 1½ hours. At the end of the 1 hour, check your legs, they should be practically done by this time, but I think that they taste better when the meat is practically falling off the bone. At this point, you should also have quite a little bit of the braising liquid in the pan. If you want lots of liquid, cover and cook for another 30 minutes. But if you like this dish dry, with a thick caramel like sauce, then cook for another 30 minutes without the lid. Be sure to baste the legs a couple of times to stop them from drying out.
Serve up the duck legs, garnished with your chosen herb. It goes great with rice or noodles, as part of a Chinese or any Oriental meal.