Food Journey: Silver Hill Peking Duck From Co Monaghan to the Parisian markets
The Product: Silver Hill Foods' Chinese Peking Duck is sold throughout Ireland, the UK, Hong Kong and Europe, in particular in some of the most renowned Parisian shops and markets. The company's Peking duck is renowned throughout the Chinese markets in Paris for its quality; succulent taste and the golden crisp lacquer finish to its flawless skin. The roast ducks are to be found hanging in the windows of some of the best restaurants in Chinatowns throughout the UK and Europe.
Breeding: All aspects of duck production are owned and controlled by the company, so its ducks can be traced from egg to the final processing stage. The ducks are fed on aall-natural formula with no added GMO products.
The Process: A laboratory on the site of Silver Hill Foods is staffed by technicians who monitor and test for hygiene and cleanliness in all departments. Duck products are inspected during processing by the Department of Agriculture veterinary inspectors and any duck that does not meet their strict standards is rejected. The company's own quality control inspectors also reject any duck that may have a skin imperfection caused by the plucking machines. All ducks are subsequently air chilled to ensure that no added water is included in the finished bird.
Food Preparation: The Peking duck is vacuum packed raw in transparent packaging so customers can judge the quality of the skin.
A Journey Begins: After maturation the ducks are delivered by refrigerated transport to the leading Chinese wholesalers in France, Tang Frères, three times a week. Each trip takes under 24 hours.
Food Preparation: In France, the wholesalers cook the duck in traditional ovens at a high temperature in their eight shops. Seasoning, spices, garlic, soy and yeast are added inside the cavity before it is sewn up. The duck is then dipped in boiling water to which vinegar and maltose are added and left to dry over night in order to produce a skin which makers compare to parchment paper.
Retail Price: Prices in France differ but the Silver Hill Peking duck retails at around €€20 according to owner Stuart Steele, managing director of Silver Hills Food.
