Recipe Shed: Hoi Sin Duck Pizza

Two of the greatest takeaway dishes in the history of British cuisine are pizza and Chinese crispy duck. So why not combine the two? This pizza makes a fantastic change from your bog-standard margherita and pepperoni pies (as good as they are) – but a bit more effort, too, First you have to confit duck legs in a slow cooker until they’re falling apart. Then make your own base (I used a bread machine, or you could make it by hand – or easier still, buy a ready-made pizza base). But after that, it’s as easy as pizza pie!

Makes 1 large pizza, enough to feed 4-6.

For the pizza base

For the topping

2 duck legs, cooked with a couple of tablespoons of goose fat or ghee in a slow cooker for 2-3 hours, until the meat is falling off the bone
Half jar hoi sin sauce
1 tbsp hot bean sauce (optional)
2 red chilles, deseeded, finely chopped
Golf ball-sized piece of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
1 red pepper, roasted, deseeded, skin peeled, then cut into strips
2 spring onions, finely sliced
Half cucumber, deseeded and sliced

1. Make the pizza base in a bread maker, according to manufacturer’s instructions (takes approx. 2 hours, start to finish). If you don’t have a bread maker, you could try Jamie Oliver’s pizza dough recipe, though I haven’t tried it myself.

2. Assemble the pizza. Using a spatula, first spread on the hoi sin sauce and hot bean sauce (if using). Scatter over the duck, followed by the chillies, ginger, pepper and spring onions.

3. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Bake for 30-35 mins, until the base is crisp and the topping is piping hot.

4. To finish, scatter over slices of cucumber.