Duck/6 recipes

This is a good "guest" food. You can appear to have mastered esoteric Oriental cooking techniques without ever having actually prepared the dish before... Unless you drop the pot on the kitchen floor and set it on fire with the hot salt, it's a pretty foolproof cooking technique.

Hearty wild rice soup with chicken, mushrooms, slivered almonds, and three kinds of onion in a dill-seasoned egg yolk-enriched broth. A Minnesota-style comfort bowl.

Cantonese steamed chicken breast with dried black mushrooms, water chestnuts, and ginger in a soy-sherry-sesame marinade. Optional Chinese sausage adds sweet, smoky richness. Ready in 20 minutes of steaming.

Rhubarb orange sauce: a tart-sweet sauce simmered from fresh rhubarb, orange juice, and sugar. Perfect with roast duck, pork, or poured warm over vanilla ice cream.

Whole wheat carob brownies are a low-fat, dairy-free, eggless dessert sweetened with honey and applesauce. Caffeine-free chocolate alternative with whole grain flour and a tender cake-like texture.

Cream cheese and olive dip with sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, and paprika. Rich, savory, and scoopable. A no-cook party appetizer that comes together in 10 minutes.

Tofu wontons with ginger, garlic, and sesame oil filling, ready for deep frying or boiling in soup. Freezer-friendly for up to 2 months.

Cornbread sausage stuffing with three breads, tart apple chunks, pecans, and breakfast sausage seasoned with sage and thyme. Stuff the bird or bake as a casserole side.

Fresh cherry sauce simmered with white wine and lemon juice, pureed smooth, then studded with whole cherries. Nutmeg and cayenne add quiet warmth. A make-ahead sauce for pork, duck, or game.

Pigs' ears salad simmers the ears with star anise and ginger until tender, then slivers them cold with carrots, cucumber, and plum sauce. A classic Chinese cold appetizer with gelatinous crunch.

Apricot chicken baked low and slow with a sweet-tangy glaze of apricot preserves, duck sauce, ketchup, and vinegar over matzo-crusted pieces. A crowd-feeding, Jewish-style classic.

Szechwan cucumber salad with wood ear mushrooms, hot chili peppers, and a tangy soy-vinegar-sesame dressing. A crunchy, spicy Chinese cold salad that comes together in 30 minutes.

Chile-dusted roast duck stuffed with jalapenos, Granny Smith apples, pine nuts, cilantro, and bread cubes. A Southwestern twist on classic roast duck.

Northern Chinese-style beef stir-fry with bok choy, sherry, five-spice, and a honey-soy gravy. A 25-minute wok dinner with real Northern provincial flavors.

Three-ingredient blackberry sauce with sugar and lemon juice, strained smooth and seedless. Pairs beautifully with duck and freezes for up to a year.

Red cherry almond barbecue sauce made with cherry pie filling and almond extract, blended smooth. A fruity, sweet glaze for grilled chicken, duck, ribs, or pork chops.