Hi chefs,
I’ve got it in my mind to try my hand a peking duck, one of my favorite dishes.
Anyone ever done this. I know it’s complicated and if done right, takes a considerable amount of time.
Some of the recipies I’ve been reading have advised to use a bicycle pump to pump up the duck before putting on the glaze and drying. Anyone know why?
Any other advice and or recipie you can give?
Thanks.
It’s for two reasons. To separate the fat and skin so more fat may be rendered while cooking, and to allow the skin to get even more dried out to insure super crispiness. Do everything the recipe calls for, even though it’s a lengthy pain in the ass. The best way is to eat it in three courses, the skin with flower buns and hoisin and scallions, the meat in a stir-fry, and the bones in a soup. Go for it and report back please.
No, but I made Seattle cringe.
Ba-dum-bum.
We made it for our Super Bowl party, and it was successful enough that we would do it again. The recipe we used skipped the bicycle pump step and instead required that you “bathe” the duck for 5 minutes with a boiling mixture of water, ginger, honey, scallion, and I think vinegar. We did this by sitting the duck upright in a colander, over a large bowl, and ladling the boiling mixture over it. Every so often we shifted the duck and colander to the pot, and ladling the mixture from the bowl back over the duck and into the pot again. (I can post the recipe if you’d like.)
By the end of the 5 minutes, the skin had separated quite well, and was puffed out from the body as if we’d actually used a pump. Then the duck got the hanging and drying treatment - the neighbors think it’s pretty funny when you have a duck dangling in front of a box fan in your garage.
One change that we made was to split the whole duck in half, before drying and cooking. Since the crispy skin is so important, this keeps you from getting gummy skin on the bottom of the bird. Just cook both halves skin side up.
And don’t skip the duck and cabbage soup at the end of the meal!
SS
I might try that SS.
I don’t have a bicycle pump and don’t really want to get one just for this.
Do you have the recipe you used for the water mixture?
Thanks.
Sure, here you go.
1 duck
2 qts. water
2" piece of ginger, sliced
4 scallions, cut into several pieces
5 cloves garlic, smashed
3 T. honey
1 t. vinegar
1 1/2 T. cornstarch, dissolved in a little water
Wash and dry duck. Split in half if you want to. Hang to dry in cool place for 4 hours (we used the garage with a box fan. We hung each half of the duck by the end of the leg, one on each side of a coat hanger for balance. This was easy and worked well.)
Bring all ingredients except cornstarch to a boil. Add dissolved cornstarch. Place duck in large colander over large bowl. Ladle the boiling mixture over it for ten minutes. This is when the skin will puff.
Hang the duck up agan for 6 or 7 more hours. The skin will be visibly dry and drawing back a bit from the bones on the edges.
Place both halves skin side up in a roasting pan and bake at 350 for 30 - 45 minutes.
That’s it! I hope it works well for you.
SS
I have made peking duck at home a number of times. My wife and her parents love my recipe. They all were born in and grew up in China. I’ll post my recipe when I get home, I don’t have the temp & times here at work. It is similar to SS’s recipe but it requires more “hang-time” prior to cooking. I have hung ducks for as long as 36 hours after the boiling water before putting them in the oven.
if you’re a traditionalist you don’t need a bicycle pump. Just blow it up with your mouth like a ballon (no I’m not kidding).
IMHO Peking roast duck found in Beijing is not so tasty. I much prefer the way it is made outside of Beijing. In Beijing, it is extremely fatty. Elsewhere generally it is cooked differently so that the fat is largely cooked out of the duck. The tradional Peking places like Quan Zhu De really are not my cup of tea.
That said, if you’re in Beijing, a place called Dark and Duck (douhuazhuang) cooks theirs in a clay oven and it’s really crispy with minimal fat. Had that last sunday actually.
Madd Maxx’s Peking Duck
1 duck
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon salt
scallions cut into thin slivers
equal parts hoisin sauce & plum sauce
Bring a large pot of water to a boil on the stovetop. While the water heats up, wash & pat dry the duck. Place the duck on a wire rack in the sink. Once the water has reached a boil, CAREFULLY pour half the pot of water over the duck to scald & firm up the skin. Flip the duck over & get the other side with the other half of the water. Tie the legs together, and hang the duck up in a cool dry place (basement or garage works well) overnight with a pan under the duck to catch the drippings. Next day mix together the honey, salt & water. It helps to warm the water a little bit, makes the honey dissolve faster. Brush this mixture over the duck (while still hanging) using a basting brush. Let the duck hang 3-4 hours more. Repeat at least once more, but I have done this step 3-4 times. Preheat the oven to 450 F. Put the duck on a rack in a roasting pan. Put the duck in the oven and immediately turn the temp down to 350 F. Roast for 1-1/2 to 2 hours depending on the size of the bird. If the skin isn’t crispy when the juice runs clear from the hip joint turn the oven all the way up for the last 10-15 minutes to crisp the skin. Mix the two sauces together, and serve on chinese pancakes with a little smear of sauce, some scallions & duck. You can thank me later.
I saw David Rosengarten make it on Taste once, and somebody else fairly recently.
Here are some links to recipes:
http://search.allrecipes.com/recipe/quick.asp?q1=peking+duck&lnkid=65&x=7&y=8
I know where you can get a duck.
There’s a mallard drake and hen that’ve been hanging outside my apartment building for the last 2 weeks, giving the evil eye to anyone who walks by. They don’t move very fast. It’d be like shooting fish in a barrel. 
On Iron Chef America, Ming Tsai used a small air compressor to inflate his duck.
It really made me want an air compressor in my kitchen.