Duck Shiitake Pizza. It’s National Pizza Day here in the US! Pizzas are an easy meal for us on weeknights. Many times, I use leftover ingredients to top a pizza. Together, citrus-marinated pulled duck meat and garlicky sauteed shiitake mushrooms have the starring role on this pizza. It’s a pizza with an Asian flavor that’s sure to please your family and definitely cause for a celebration.
Use any duck meat that you like. I use duck legs in this recipe. You can usually find fresh or frozen duck legs at your local grocery store or you can ask your butcher to order them. Whole Foods Market usually carries fresh duck legs as does my local Giant Food store.
Making pulled duck meat sounds very involved but it’s not. To make the pulled duck meat, sear some duck legs with skin on in a Dutch oven in olive oil over medium heat until the skin browns nicely on each side.
Then, remove the duck legs to a plate to keep warm. Saute some onions and carrots in the same pan in the duck fat.
Once the vegetables are slightly soft and caramelized, return the duck legs to the pan and place them on top of the vegetables.
Add chicken stock to cover the duck legs and let them braise over low heat for several hours until the duck meat is falling off the bones. You may need to add additional chicken stock during the simmering period.
When the duck meat has fallen off the bones, turn off the heat and let the duck meat cool.
Remove the duck meat from the chicken stock and “pull” into smaller pieces with a fork or your fingers. Set the pulled duck meat aside or chill until ready to use. You can retain the rich stock after straining to use in a soup or sauce at a later date. Be sure to remove the leg bones from the stock.
To make the PIZZA, start out with a prepared pizza dough. You can use your favorite recipe or purchase a store-bought dough ball or a prepared crust such as Boboli.
While your dough is rising, marinate the duck meat in a mixture of orange juice, minced fresh ginger, salt and pepper. Prepare your dough, roll out and place on a pizza pan.
Spread a mixture of BBQ and hoisin sauces on the prepared pizza dough. Top the sauces with some shredded mozzarella cheese. Saute some shiitake mushrooms with some olive oil and garlic.
Spread the sauteed mushrooms over the cheeses. Drain the duck meat and then spread it out evenly over the cheeses. For some added crunch, sprinkle some shredded raw Brussels sprouts over the pizza.
Top the pizza with some crumbles of goat cheese and more shredded mozzarella. Bake the pizza until the cheese is bubbling and turning golden brown.
Remove the pizza from the oven. Let the pizza rest for a few minutes before cutting into slices.
To serve, garnish with chopped cilantro, thinly sliced scallions, and finely chopped toasted pistachios.
Enjoy!
++++++++
From the kitchen of A Food Lover’s Delight….
Duck Shiitake Pizza
Ingredients:
1 pizza dough
1 c orange juice
1 T finely chopped fresh ginger
Dash salt and pepper
2 c pulled duck meat (see below for recipe)
2 T olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 c shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and thinly sliced
1/2 c hoisin sauce
1 c BBQ sauce
2 c shredded mozzarella cheese
4 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
1 c thinly sliced raw Brussels sprouts (optional)
1/4 c sliced scallions
1/4 c finely chopped toasted pistachios (Trader Joe’s carries them)
1/4 c finely chopped cilantro
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Prepare your pizza dough. When it has risen, roll it out and place on a greased pizza pan. If you are using a prepared dough, place it on a pizza pan according to the package instructions.
3. Mix together the orange juice, ginger and a dash of salt and pepper.
4. In a non-reactive bowl, toss the duck meat with the orange juice mixture and set aside.
5. In a non-stick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat.
6. Saute the garlic and shiitake mushrooms in the oil until the mushrooms are soft. Remove from the heat and set aside.
7. Mix together the hoisin and BBQ sauces and spread the mixture evenly over the pizza dough.
8. Scatter half of the shredded mozzarella over the sauce.
9. Drain the marinated duck meat. Scatter the duck meat over the cheeses.
10. Add the shiitakes and then the shredded Brussels sprouts to the pizza.
11. Add the goat cheese crumbles and the rest of the shredded mozzarella to the pizza.
12. Bake the pizza for 12 – 15 minutes until the crust is brown and cooked through and the cheeses are bubbling and golden brown.
13. Remove the pizza from the oven when it is done. Let the pizza sit for a few minutes before cutting into slices.
14. Scatter the scallions, toasted pistachios, and cilantro over the pizza, cut into slices, and serve!
Makes 1 fancy pizza that should feed 4 hungry diners. Offer with a side of my Simple Cucumber Salad.
Variations: Use pulled chicken or pork if you don’t have duck meat. Substitute parsley for the cilantro. Try a different cheese such as a provolone instead of the mozzarella. Use chopped almonds if you don’t have toasted pistachios. Try a flatbread as the base instead of pizza dough.
To make the pulled duck meat:
Sear some duck legs with skin on in a Dutch oven in olive oil over medium heat until the skin browns nicely on each side. Then, remove the duck legs to a plate to keep warm. Saute some onions and carrots in the same pan in the duck fat. Once the vegetables are slightly soft and caramelized, return the duck legs to the pan and place them on top of the vegetables. Add chicken stock to cover the duck legs and let them braise over low heat for several hours until the duck meat is falling off the bones. You may need to add additional chicken stock during the simmering period. When the duck meat has fallen off the bones, turn off the heat and let the duck meat cool. Remove the duck meat from the chicken stock and “pull” into smaller pieces with a fork or your fingers. Set the pulled duck meat aside or chill until ready to use. You can retain the rich stock after straining to use in a soup or sauce at a later date. Be sure to remove the leg bones from the stock.
www.afoodloversdelight.com (Copyright Adroit Ideals 2017)
Tell me what you think!