Skip to Content

Plum and Duck Stir Fry with Crispy Skin

Duck stir fry with fresh plums and plum sauce & crispy skin is a quick, delicious and playful look at classic Chinese takeaway flavours.

The duck skin takes around 20 minutes to crisp up in a hot oven, giving you ample time to prep and cook, the whole recipe comes together in around 30 minutes!

Plum and duck stir fry with crispy skin, toasted peanuts and spring onions.

An “Alternative” Duck with Plum Sauce

I cook with a lot of duck and have more than a few duck recipes here on my website… The most common comment that I get is that “I’ve never cooked with duck, I find it a bit intimidating”.

I think that is a very natural response, we are all a bit wary of things we have never tried before.

But cooking with duck is easy and it is an incredible meat in terms of flavour and versatility.

I have recipes ranging from a duck curry and duck burger to the classic duck with an orange sauce and even a duck chow mein.

Like so many of my recipes, this duck stir fry is built on well-trodden flavour combinations with a bit of a twist.

This recipe uses whole pieces of fruit in addition to the plum sauce to add a fruity bite to a classic style of dish… unusual yes, but utterly delicious!

The duck breast cooks for just 2-3 minutes in the sauce to make sure that it stay soft and juicy.

The skin of the duck breast does not go to waste either, it gets crisped up in the oven with a sprinkle of Chinese 5 spice. It makes for the most wonderful textural change from the succulent and soft duck meat.

Close-up stir-fried duck breast with fresh plums and crispy skin.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you remove duck skin?

Simply pick an end and pull, there is a little section in the middle of the breast that has a bit of “silver skin” that is a little tougher. Just pick at this with your fingertip and continue to pull.

Can I crisp up the duck skin another way?

I’ve tested everything from the grill (broiler), a pan and even an air fryer and none of the methods come close to the results you get from the oven. Sorry!

Can I use leftover duck?

Yes, if you have roasted a whole duck and have some leftovers feel free to use it.

It does not need cooking so throw it all in with the marinade and plums and heat it through for a minute or so.

Can I cook this in advance?

Not really, this dish does not reheat very well because the duck goes very chewy!

A hint for the plums!

Using very slightly under-ripe plums helps them hold together rather than go mushy when they are cooked.

You do not want rock-hard plums, just ones that are slightly firmer than you would eat.

Overhead plum and duck stir fry with crispy skin, toasted peanuts and spring onions.

Serving Suggestions

Any stir fry has an affinity with rice and this quickly stir-fried duck breast recipe is no different.

It is served here with some plain rice, but it works equally well with egg-fried rice. But you do need to plan for that as running two woks at the same time is a headache!

Noodles work particularly well too. You could go for something hot like these takeaway-style sesame noodles, or something cold like my soba noodle salad.

Adding some prawn crackers or sesame prawn toast to munch on before you get stuck into this is also a wonderful idea.

Close-up plum and duck stir fry with crispy skin, toasted peanuts and spring onions.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think they make a material difference to a recipe. If you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

  • Wok, I use a large carbon steel wok.
  • Oven.
  • Kitchen knife.
  • Chopping board.
  • Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.
  • Mixing and prep bowls.
  • Kitchen paper.
  • Stirring and serving spoons.
Fresh plum and duck stir fry with crispy skin, toasted peanuts and spring onions.
Yield: 2 Servings

Duck Stir Fry Recipe With Plums

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Duck with plum is a classic combination, this quick stir fry recipe gives the idea a wee twist but retains classic Chinese flavours and that crispy duck skin is so, so good!

Ingredients

  • 2 Duck Breasts
  • ½ Tsp Chinese Five Spice
  • ¼ Tsp Salt
  • 4 Tbsp Plum Sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
  • Pinch of MSG
  • 100g (⅔ Cup) Red Onion
  • 3 Garlic Cloves
  • 35g (Thumb Sized Piece) Ginger
  • 2 Plums
  • 2 Spring Onions
  • 25g (2 Tbsp) Toasted Peanuts
  • 2 Tbsp Cooking Oil

Instructions

  1. Place the duck breasts on a chopping board and peel off the skin.
  2. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and add the duck skin, fat side down, then sprinkle over the chinese five spice and salt. Add another sheet of baking parchment and then another baking sheet and place in the oven at 200C or 400F for 20 minutes.
  3. Slice the duck meat into 3-4mm (⅛") thick strips across the breast.
  4. Mix together the plum sauce, soy sauces, rice wine vinegar and pinch of msg in a medium bowl, then add the duck meat and allow to marinate whilst you prepare the vegetables.
  5. Top and tail the red onion, then cut it in half top to tail and peel it. Slice the onion halves into 5-6mm (¼") thick slices, again top to tail.
  6. Peel the garlic cloves and slice them as finely as you can.
  7. Peel the ginger and cut it into batons as finely as you can.
  8. Cut the plums in half, then remove the stone and cut them into slices 3-4mm (⅛") thick.
  9. Finely slice the spring onions at a 45 angle for garnish.
  10. Roughly chop the toasted peanuts for garnish.
  11. Just before you start cooking remove the duck from the marinade.
  12. Heat a wok over a very high heat and when it begins to shimmer add the oil.
  13. Throw in the onions and stir fry for a minute.
  14. Add the garlic and ginger and stir fry for 30 seconds.
  15. Add the duck and stir fry for 2-3 minutes.
  16. Pour in the sauce and add the plum slices and cook for 30-60 seconds until everything begins to bubble, then remove from the heat.
  17. The duck skin should be ready to remove from the oven now, place it on some kitchen paper to aborb excess fat then shred it.
  18. Serve with stir fry sprinkled with spring onions, shredded duck skin and toasted peanuts.

Notes

Serve with rice.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 738Total Fat: 47gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 35gCholesterol: 255mgSodium: 1270mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 5gSugar: 16gProtein: 55g

Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.

Did you make this recipe?

If you made this recipe, I'd love to see what you did and what I can do better, share a picture with me on Instagram and tag me @krumplibrian and tell me how it went!

Sue R

Monday 14th of October 2019

I'm wondering if instead of throwing out the duck skin if you can dry it well and deep fry it for some crunch. Think it'd work? Bit of extra bother I know but hey I love the skin of just about anything especially if it's crispy!

Brian Jones

Monday 14th of October 2019

Oh I never throw it away and will always make some sort of duck scratching with it, but I will usually eat that as a chefs perk or redner it down and use it as the oil to cook something else.

You could serve it as a crunch on top of this recipe but it takes it away from being the fast and furious recipe I wanted it to be :)

Jo Allison

Thursday 10th of October 2019

This recipe is definitely the one to check out if you feel unsure about cooking with duck as it couldn't be simpler! Absolutely delicious!

Brian Jones

Sunday 13th of October 2019

Thanks Jo!

Erica Schwarz

Thursday 10th of October 2019

I'm pinning this to save. My husband is always asking me to cook duck - I did once and it was delicious. This recipe sounds like one he would love.

Brian Jones

Sunday 13th of October 2019

This is definitely a crowd pleaser and really simple too!

Jacqueline Meldrum

Thursday 10th of October 2019

I do love when fruit is added to savoury dishes. I don't think it happens enough actually. When cleverly done it works so well and plums can add so much flavour to dishes like this. Nice!

Brian Jones

Sunday 13th of October 2019

I'm totally with you I cook with fruit in loads of savoury dishes!

Sylvie

Thursday 10th of October 2019

I'm obsessed with anything duck so I need to try this one asap!!

Brian Jones

Sunday 13th of October 2019

It is very good :D

Skip to Recipe