Cantonese roast duck

Thaw a frozen duck in the refrigerator, which takes 36 hours.

Remove the head but keep the neck, which is needed to inflate the bird; cut off the wings and feet, which burn while roasting and are high in collagen for stock. Rinse thoroughly.

For the glaze, put 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 tablespoon maltose in a saucepan.

Add a third of a cup of apple cider vinegar and three quarters of a cup of Chinese cooking wine; stir over medium heat only until the sugar and maltose melt, then take off the heat. Do not boil.

Toast the spices in the wok over low heat for a couple of minutes, blend to a fine powder and pass through a sieve.

Mix the spice powder with 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons sugar, 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce, 1 tablespoon zhu hou paste and 2 pieces of fermented bean curd.

Dab the duck dry inside and out with paper towels so the seasoning is not diluted.

Pour all the seasoning into the cavity and rub it in for a few minutes. Scale the seasoning to the weight of the duck.

For the stuffing, heat a generous amount of oil in the wok with ginger slices and 2 tablespoons minced garlic, add one finely diced sweet onion and stir over medium low until soft and translucent.

Stuff the sautéed onion into the cavity with a little cilantro and scallion.

Seal the cavity by stitching a metal skewer through it repeatedly, as tight as possible, tucking the tip inside at the end.

Fill a big pot with water over medium heat; it takes 10 to 15 minutes to boil.

Pump air in through the neck under the skin, holding it tightly to seal, until the whole chest is inflated and the skin separates from the fat; tie the neck with kitchen twine to retain the air.

Immediately scald the skin in the sink, breast side up, ladling the hot water over with a big cup so the skin tightens and smooths; do the back holding the neck. Do not drop the duck into boiling water, which renders the fat out and makes the glaze stick unevenly.

Rinse under running water to stop it overheating.

Drizzle the glaze all over, catching it in a tray below and reapplying until every part of the skin is covered.

Dry the skin on a rack in a dehydrator at the lowest temperature for at least 6 hours, until it feels like plastic.

Heat the oven to 360F. Line the baking pan with tinfoil and set the duck breast side up on the baking rack lifted by an extra steamer rack for air circulation; it is not flipped.

Roast at 360F for 20 minutes to build the golden red colour.

Lower to 320F and roast another 50 minutes, adding 15 minutes for every extra pound.

Pull the skewer out, collect the onion duck juice in a bowl and pass it through a strainer to use as a sauce.

Carve and serve with white rice and blanched greens, drizzled with the sauce.