When I worked at River Cottage HQ, we used to smoke duck, rabbit and fish in a smoker made out of an old bread bin. It always felt like an exciting and alchemical way to cook, yielding incredible results, and it’s so simple, not least because food has been smoked since we first learned to cook over fire. Today’s recipe is my simple take on Chinese zhangcha duck, River Cottage-style and with a zero-waste twist by using spent teabags as the perfect fuel.Tea-smoked duckIt was always fun cooking at River Cottage: in between cooking lunch for our guests, we’d do cooking demos and sometimes cooked to camera (I have a cameo at the end of this video of Gill Meller making smoked duck that was filmed more than 20 years ago!)Zhangcha duck is traditionally smoked with camphor leaves and green or black tea, and while you can find camphor in some Asian supermarkets and online, tea alone does the job very well, too. Even still-wet spent teabags will work perfectly, imparting their incredible aroma into the meat. Brown sugar and spices add sweetness and complexity, while a little rice helps slow down the smoking process.Use a wok or a thick-based pan for your smoker; you will also need a rack that fits inside and a lid (or tinfoil) to seal in the smoke. I used a rough steel pan, a steamer basket and a tight-fitting lid because I don’t keep foil in the house.Once smoked, the duck tastes even better the next day, and keeps well for up to five days in the fridge. Serve with rice, steamed vegetables and soy sauce, or make a noodle broth with the duck carcass and top with the tea-smoked duck and some slow-roast leg.2 duck breasts