Warning: I get requests about how to make peking duck at home recentely, so I publish this post. But summer is not a good season because of the high temperature. You can keep this for cooler days.
Maximally approached homemade Peking duck finished in an oven with duck pancake. Compared with chicken, Duck is not a common choice in Chinese kitchen. But I am a duck lover, especially for roasted whole duck. Peking duck is my ideal star.
It is not difficult to make a homemade Peking duck. But this is not the authentic Peking duck recipe because I just do not have enough tools for finish all the steps. And I simplified the steps to make this recipe realizable at home.
To begin with a perfect Peking duck recipe at home, firstly choose head on (easy to hang for air drying out), clean and leaner ducks. Add around 1 teaspoon of white vinegar in clean water and soak the duck for 1 hour. Then prepare lines and tie the ducks from the top of the neck. Hang them on hooks. I hang the ducks on the top of kitchen pool. Please note: I make this peking duck in March when the room temperature is around 13-15 degree C, you will need to hang the duck in fridge or in a room with air conditioner in hot summer days.
You can see the difference from the follow picture. The right one is well tightened and the left one is still waiting for the treatment.
Then mix 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce with1/2 tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine and 1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder. Spread the sauce on the inner side of the duck.
In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of maltose with 2 tablespoons of hot water and 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar. Then brush the liquid evenly on the duck skin (the liquid should be warm for the first brushing). Then wait for 30 minutes and brush again. Hang on for at least 24 hours (I don’t recommend making this is summer, autumn and winter are the best seasons). In winter, you can hang up for 5 days.
Then seal the bottom before roasting.
Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C. Place the duck on a baking grill and use a lined baking pan to catch the drops. And then roast for 20 minutes. Then take the duck over and roast the other side for another 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 120 degree C and continue roasting for 30 minutes. (My bird is around 1000g each one, if you get larger ones, lengthen another 10 minutes for 500g weight addition).
Let the skin even crisper
Option 1: heat enough hot oil, then hold the neck and pour the hot oil on the skins. I use a very deep bowl for this step. Be carefully, do not get burnt by the hot oil. This help to make the skin even crisper.
Option 2: Set the oven temperature to 180 degree C again and re-roast for 6-10 minutes (watch carefully at this step and do not let the skin get burnt.)
How to cut the duck
Rest the duck for several minutes before cutting. Firstly cut a line around the breast. Then divide into two part in the middle.
Then slice the breast meat one by one.
How to serve
Make peking pancake during the roasting time, cut cucumber into small strips. Cut the leek onion in half, take the green part out and cut the remaining white shell and then cut into small shreds.
Sweet bean sauce: mix 2 tablespoons of sweet bean sauce with 1 tablespoon of sesame oil. Sweet bean sauce can be found in typical Asian supermarkets or Amazon under various English names, but with the same Chinese name (Simplified Chinese:甜面酱; Traditional Chinese: 甜麵醬). Sweet bean sauce is made from soy beans and mainly used as a seasoning for example zha jiang mian.
How to assemble
Take one peking duck wrapper, brush around 1 teaspoon of sweet bean paste on the bottom, lay a small brunch of shredded leek onion and a small strip of cucumber. Then place two slices of duck breast.
Roll up and enjoy!
Homemade Peking Duck
Ingredients
Roasted duck
- 1 duck ,clean, lean around 1000g
- 1 tsp. white vinegar ,for soaking
- 2 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tsp. Chinese five spice powder
- 2 tbsp. maltose
- 2 tbsp. boiling water
- 1.5 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine
Assembling
- 10 pecking duck pancake
- 2 tbsp. sweet bean sauce
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
- 1 English cucumber
- 2 leek onions ,white part only
Instructions
Prepare
- To begin with a perfect Peking duck recipe at home, firstly choose head on (easy to hang for air drying out), clean and lean ducks. Add around 1 teaspoon of white vinegar in clean water and soak the duck for 1 hour. Then prepare lines and tie the ducks from the top of the neck. Hang them on hooks. I hang the ducks on the top of kitchen pool.
- Mix 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce with 1½ tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine and 1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder. Spread the sauce on the inner side of the duck.
- In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of maltose with 2 tablespoons of hot water and 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar. Then brush the liquid evenly on the duck skin (the liquid should be warm for the first brushing). Then wait for 30 minutes and brush again. Hang on for at least 24 hours (I don’t recommend making this is summer, autumn and winter are the best seasons). In winter, you can hang up for 5 days.
Roast the bird
- Seal the bottom before roasting with soaked toothpicks.
- Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C. Place the duck on a baking grill and use a lined baking pan to catch the drops. And then roast for 20 minutes. Then take the duck over and roast the other side for another 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 120 degree C and continue roasting for 30 minutes. (My bird is around 1000g each one, if you get larger ones, lengthen another 10 minutes for 500g weight addition).
Let the skin even crisper
- Option 1: heat enough hot oil, then hold the neck and pour the hot oil on the skins. I use a very deep bowl for this step. Be carefully, do not get burnt by the hot oil. This help to make the skin even crisper.
- Option 2: Set the oven temperature to 180 degree C again and re-roast for 6-10 minutes (watch carefully at this step and do not let the skin get burnt.)
How to cut the duck
- Firstly cut a line around the breast. Then divide into two part in the middle. Then slice the breast meat with skins one by one. You can hand-shred the left meat off and leave the leftover bones for a soup broth.
Side ingredients for serving
- Make peking pancake during the roasting time, cut cucumber into small strips. Cut the leek onion in half, take the green part out and cut the remaining white shell and then cut into small shreds.
- Sweet bean sauce (甜面酱): mix 2 tablespoons of sweet red bean sauce with 1 tablespoon of sesame oil.
How to assemble
- Take one duck wrapper, brush around 1 teaspoon of sweet red bean paste on the bottom, lay a small brunch of shredded leek onion and a small strip of cucumber. Then place two slices of duck breast. Roll up and enjoy.
Nutrition
Hi, I’m going through your recipe and just want to double check with you. In your recipe you stated that needs 1.5 tbsp cooking wine but I only see 1/2 tsp of wine is used. I was wondering what about the other 1 tbsp?
• 2 tbsp. maltose
• 2 tbsp. boiling water
• 1.5 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine
• Mix 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce with½ tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine and 1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder. Spread the sauce on the inner side of the duck.
In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of maltose with 2 tablespoons of hot water and ½ teaspoon white vinegar.
Hi, InIn
I’m sorry, the “½ tbsp Chinese cooking wine” should be 1½ tbsp.