Refreshing Crispy Duck Salad with Watermelon, Cucumber & Cashews
Refreshing Crispy Duck Salad with Watermelon, Cucumber & Cashews
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Crispy duck, refreshing watermelon and a sweet and spicy hoi sin dressing!
This yummy Crispy Duck Salad is made up of crispy duck, refreshing watermelon chunks, wafer thin cucumber slices, crunchy roasted cashews and a spicy and sweet hoisin dressing! This Crispy Duck Salad is about to be your new favourite summer salad!
Welcome to my first ever recipe series! This week I will be posting a series of delicious healthy, protein packed salads perfect for summer! If you are sick of the same boring salads this summer be sure to stay tuned and add these inspired salads from around the world!
If you love salad but need it protein packed and exciting this is the series for you. All of the salads in the series have a spicy kick and protein. You will find chicken, beef, lamb, prawns and salmon so be sure to stay tuned if you are a meat and fish lover!
I love Asian food, so a lot of my salads have an Asian influence but there are also some pumped up classics too!
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Inspiration behind the salad
I live in the busy UK capital London, home to two delicious restaurants Hakkasan and Sexy Fish. Both restaurants are based in Mayfair and offer decadent Chinese and pan asian menus. The salads at both restaurants are truly delicious – my favourite is definitely the Sexy Fish version.
I remember the first time I tried the salad and wondering if the flavours would be complimentary, and boy were they! I have to say I think mine comes out on top because of the personal adaptations I have made like the spicy hoisin dressing! let me know what you think in the comments.
Plating this Crispy Duck Salad
This salad is perfect for a hot summer day or night its the perfect indulgent salad guaranteed not to bore you. It is also a great salad to serve at a dinner party. Impress your guests by plating the salad in the gorgeous way I have done in my photos.
It is super easy to do and takes no time at all. Follow the easy steps in the recipe card at the end of this post or just copy the photos!
What do i need?
- Crispy duck leg – for this salad we want something thats ready to go straight away. I have used half crispy aromatic duck that is ready in just 45 minutes! Its super easy and fuss free! I bought mine in Lidl last week they were selling them and appear to still be doing so FOR JUST £3.99! Alternatively, most major supermarkets sell these ready to go crispy duck packs, they often come with pancakes and sauce. If you live in the UK you can buy this type of duck from Ocado, Asda, Sainsbury’s and even Aldi!
- Watermelon and cucumber – if you love watermelon and have the space, buy a whole watermelon to eat all week – its the best in the summertime! Alternatively, lots of supermarkets sell halves and quarters of watermelon. Or you can even buy a packaged portion size which is what I did. For cucumbers I like them organic fresh and crunchy!
- Mixed leaves – a crucial part of the salad. Spinach is essential as well as rocket and mache or lambs lettuce is great too. You can use any salad you like but it works best with softer salads like the ones named. You can buy a bag like this one from Ocado.
- Cashews add the perfect crunch to this salad and nutty flavour. I buy plain cashews and roast in the oven for approximately 3-5 minutes or until a light golden brown. Alternatively, you can eat them like that or buy pre roasted cashews.
- I also like to add some chopped red chilli and a few coriander leaves to my salad at the end for extra spice, flavour and aromatics. This is totally optional!
The Dresing –
The dressing is super easy to make and seriously yummy! Its spicy and sweet and perfect for the flavours in this salad. All you need is:
- rice vinegar 1 tbsp;
- 1 tbsp hoisin sauce;
- chilli oil 1 tsp;
- 1 tsp sesame oil;
- 1 tsp honey; and
- splash soy sauce.
Measure all the ingredients into a jar close with the lid and shake well – done! This is the best way to make a dressing. I do it every time I make dressing, It is fuss free and perfect when you want to make a big batch. Pop the jar in the fridge and store for next time!
I hope you love this salad and make it all summer long because i’ve literally already had it twice since these photos were taken! I would love to hear your thoughts below in the comments!
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Looking for more Salads?
Check out my Keto Caesar Salad and Sirloin Steak Salad recipes.
This salad is the first of a series of 7. Follow us on Instagram and join the food, fun and stay tuned for tomorrows salad!
Crispy Duck Salad with Watermelon, Cucumber & Cashews
Equipment
- Salad spinner
- Sharp knife
- Chopping board
- Lidded jar
- Mandolin
Ingredients
- half a crispy duck
- 2 cups mixed leaves spinach, rocket, red chard,
- 1 cup cubed watermelon
- 2 inch piece of cucumber finely sliced
- ¼ cup roasted cashews about 10
Spicy Hoi Sin Dressing
- 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp chilli oil
- 1 tsp honey
- splash of soy sauce
Instructions
Crispy Duck
- Put your crispy duck leg or confit duck in a pre heated oven at 200°C. Once the duck is in turn down the temperature to 180°C. Cook for 30 minutes and turn temperature back up to 200°C for the final 15 minutes. When cooked take out leave to rest for 5 minutes and shred with a fork.
The Dressing and Salad
- Wash the mixed leaves and cucumber. Dry the leaves thoroughly in a salad spinner and set aside in a salad bowl. Wash and chop the red chilli and coriander if using and set aside.
- In your jar measure out all the dressing ingredients close, shake well and your dressing is ready!
- Prep your watermelon into cube sized chunks. Thinly slice the cucumbers using a mandolin and cover the bottom of your serving plates with the cucumbers. Add the watermelon chunks to the outside of the plate leaving a space in the middle for the dressed leaves.
- Add most of the dressing to the leaves and toss together with 3 quarters of the shredded duck.
- Place the dressed leaves in the centre of the plate and add some crispy duck, roasted cashews, red chilli and coriander to the top. Finally drizzle on some more dressing and enjoy!
Notes
Did you make this Crispy Duck Salad?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and tag @chilliandlife on Instagram and hashtag it #chilliandlife
This salad is a part of a series of 7! Be sure to follow us on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook to stay fully up to date with the series! There are many more exciting salads to come!
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