You know you’ve got a taco problem when you make a duck breast recipe from a destined-to-be-classic Chinese cookbook and think, “Wouldn’t these be good in tortillas?” Yes, that’s what happened to me when I tried Eileen Yin-Fei Lo’s simple baked duck breasts from Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking. I served them for a Chinese dinner that night, but pretty soon I was playing around with a riff on five-spice powder, combining Asian and Mexican ingredients and rubbing them into the breasts before using Lo’s baking technique. A sweet, sour, and spicy plum salsa was just the thing to cut through and complement the deep flavors of the rich duck.

　　

Ingredients

1 whole star anise

　　1 teaspoon dried oregano (preferably Mexican)

　　1/2 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns

　　1/2 teaspoon ground ancho or other chile

　　1/2 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt, plus more to taste

　　1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

　　2 boneless, skin-on duck breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each)

　　3 or 4 corn tortillas, preferably homemade (page 84)

　　1/2 jalapeño chile, stemmed and seeded (seeds reserved)

　　1 barely ripe black or red plum, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

　　1 small shallot lobe, thinly sliced

　　1 tablespoon lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

　　3 large fresh mint leaves, chopped

　　2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice

　　1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

　　

Step 1

Using a spice grinder (such as a coffee grinder reserved for spices), grind the star anise, dried oregano, and Szechuan peppercorns to a fine powder. Dump into a small bowl and stir in the ground ancho, salt, and cinnamon.

　　

Step 2

Pat dry the duck breasts with a paper towel. Use a sharp knife to cut through just the skin and fat, without piercing the meat, in 1-inch intervals, then repeat the cuts at a 90° angle to make a crosshatch pattern all across the skin. Sprinkle the spice mixture all over the duck breasts. Pack in heavy-duty resealable plastic bags, squeezing as much air out as possible, and refrigerate for several hours or as long as 24 hours.

　　

Step 3

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

　　

Step 4

In a small roasting pan lined with aluminum foil, roast the duck breasts skin side up for 10 minutes. Increase the heat to 550°F and turn the breasts skin side down. Roast until much of the fat has rendered and the skin is browned and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate, pour off the extra duck fat from the pan and reserve for another use. Let the duck breasts rest for at least 10 minutes. (If desired, wrap one of the duck breasts in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for up to 1 week for a later meal.)

　　

Step 5

Warm the tortillas (see page 85) and wrap them in aluminum foil to keep warm.

　　

Step 6

Meanwhile, make the salsa. Finely chop the jalapeño. In a small mixing bowl, combine the jalapeño with the plum, shallot, cilantro, mint, lime juice, oil, and a generous sprinkling of salt. Taste, add more salt if necessary; if you want more heat, add some of the reserved jalapeño seeds.

　　

Step 7

Lay the tortillas out on a plate. Cut the duck breast crosswise into 1/2-inch slices, place a couple of slices on each tortilla, top each with the plum salsa, and eat.

　　Cooks' Note

　　I call for two duck breasts here, because it’s difficult to make much less of this spice rub, but you can save one of the breasts for another day and another use (such as sliced cold on a salad).

　　Reprinted with permission from Serve Yourself: Nightly Adventures in Cooking for One by Joe Yonan. Text copyright © 2011 by Joe Yonan; photographs copyright © 2011 by Ed Anderson. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.Joe Yonan is the food and travel editor at the Washington Post, where he writes the award-winning "Cooking for One" column. Joe's work also earned the Post the 2009 and 2010 James Beard Foundation's award for best food section. He is the former travel editor at the Boston Globe. Visit www.joeyonan.com.