Peking Duck with Mandarin Pancakes

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Place the duck on a trivet in the sink and pour the boiling water over the duck to scald and firm up the skin. Carefully lift it out on the trivet and drain thoroughly. Tie kitchen string firmly around the legs of the bird and suspend it from a butcher's hook from a shelf in the kitchen or cellar, whichever is the coolest. Place a bowl underneath to catch the drips and leave overnight.
2. Next day, blend the honey, water and salt and brush half the mixture over the duck skin. Hang up again and leave for 2-3 hours. Repeat and leave to dry completely for a further 3-4 hours.
3. Make the pancakes. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl or food processor. Add 15ml / 1 tbsp of the oil, then gradually add enough of the boiling water to form a soft but not sticky dough. Knead for 2-3 minutes by hand or for 30 seconds in the food processor. Allow to rest for 30 minutes.
4. Knead the dough, then divide it into 24 pieces and roll each piece to a 15cm / 6in round. Brush the surface of half the rounds with oil, then sandwich the rounds together in pairs.
5. Brush the surface of two heavy frying pans sparingly with oil. Add one pancake pair to each pan and cook gently for 2-3 minutes until cooked but not coloured. Turn over and cook for 2-3 minutes more.
6. Slide the double pancakes out of the pan and pull them apart. Stack on a plate, placing a square of non-stick baking parchment between each while cooking the remainder. Cool, wrap tightly in foil and set aside.
7. Preheat the oven to 230°C / 450°F / Gas 8. When it reaches that temperature, put the duck on a rack in a roasting tin and place it in the oven. Immediately reduce the temperature to 180°C / 350°F /  Gas 4 and roast the duck for 1¾ hours without basting. Check that the skin is crisp and, if necessary, increase the oven temperature to the maximum. Roast for 15 minutes more.
8. Meanwhile, place the spring onion strips in iced water to crisp up. Drain. Pat the cucumber pieces dry on kitchen paper. Reheat the prepared pancakes by steaming the foil parcel for 5-10 minutes in a bamboo steamer over a wok or saucepan of boiling water. Pour the dipping sauces into small dishes to share between the guests.
9. Carve the duck into 4cm / 1½in pieces. At the table, each guest smears some of the prepared sauce on a pancake, tops it with a small amount of crisp duck skin and meat and adds cucumber and spring onion strips before enjoying the rolled-up pancake.

COOK'S TIP

Mandarin pancakes can be cooked ahead and frozen. Simply separate the cooked pancakes with squares of freezer paper and wrap them in a plastic bag. They can be heated from frozen as described in the recipe. If time is short, use ready-made pancakes, available from large supermarkets and oriental stores.

Serves 8.