Sichuan peppercorn brine for duck or pork

This brine is inspired by some of the key flavours of Sichuan (or Szechuan) cooking – chilli, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, ginger and star anise. It’s a great brine for pork, as well as chicken or duck. The salt ratio has been lowered to seven percent due to the addition of salty soy sauce (most brines require a ten percent ratio of salt to water). This recipe makes three litres of brine – as the meat needs to be totally submerged in the solution, make sure this will be enough to cover it before beginning, and scale up (or down) as required.