Eating Bejing Duck at Xindalu Restaurant in Shanghai

Duck

Beijing or “Peking” Duck is a classic dish that everyone has likely heard of but perhaps doesn’t completely understand. When I first visited China I decided I had to try Beijing’s signature dish so saddled up to an order one evening to the giggles and chuckles of the wait-staff. Expecting a dish of something, the whole duck was rolled over to my table. I had no idea what I had gotten myself into! It was difficult for me to enjoy that first foray into roast duck but now that I’ve been here a while, I have learned to love Beijing Duck – or simply “roast duck” as it’s called in Chinese (kao ya or 烤鸭).

The kind folks at Xindalu China Kitchen in the Hyatt on the Bund, Shanghai, allowed me to come in and photograph the step-by-step cooking and carving (and eating) of Beijing-style roast duck. Xindalu’s Beijing cuisine is about as authentic as you can get in Shanghai. They’re special duck-roasting oven caused a delay in the restaurant’s opening (it was so heavy the foundation of the hotel had to be rebuilt). The ducks are sourced from farms outside of Beijing and the wood for roasting is red date tree wood, shipped down from Beijing every month and warehoused in Shanghai.

Follow this quick guide to get an idea of what this famous Chinese dish is all about but here’s a warning. If you view these photos while you’re hungry, you’re likely to purchase tickets to China to sample this yourself!

Behold the raw duck

Ducks ready for roasting get a hook through the neck before they’re put into the oven. While these birds look big, there’s enough meat on one for about 4 people as long as you’re eating other dishes. If you’re just two people (or one), order a half-duck.

Roasting the duck

Ducks are hooked in the neck and then put inside the oven for roasting. Duck chefs are vigilant. The main source of fire in the oven is towards the front and the overall heat roasts the duck. But the chefs have to hand-turn the ducks every few minutes to ensure that the bird gets evenly roasted.

Wiping the duck, getting ready to serve

After the duck is finished, it is pulled from the oven and wiped to prepare for serving at the table.

 

Serving the duck

One of the most lovely things about enjoying Beijing Duck is the fact that it is served at the table. This gives an element of fun to the meal as you get the opportunity to interact with the chef.

At traditional Beijing Duck restaurants, the chef brings the duck to your table and carves it there. The duck has to be eaten soon after it comes from the oven to best enjoy the flavor of the crispy skin. After a certain time (Xindalu sends all ducks into the stock-pot if they’re not served within 15 minutes), the skin absorbs moisture from the air and isn’t as delicious.

Carving the duck

The chef carves the duck at your table. It is a real treat to watch the carving so do try to put your chopsticks down and pay attention. He will first deftly carve off the crispy skin from the duck’s breast.

Some ducks are very fatty so you’ll get a layer of fat underneath the skin. The ducks at Xindalu China Kitchen are much less fatty so the skin has just a minor layer. Eating the skin is a real delicacy and you should try it – but it’s OK if you decide it’s not for you (delicious meat is coming).

Eating the Duck: 1) Crispy Skin with sugar

And here you go, finally you get to sample the dish you’ve been waiting for. The crispy breast skin is the first on the table.

Take a piece of skin with your chopsticks and dip the inside into the little bowl of sugar on the table. When warm, the sugar will stick easily to the skin and when you pop it into your mouth, it literally melts. Yummmmmm.

 

Eating the Duck: 2) Lean breast in garlic sauce

While you’re oooing and ahhing over crispy skin, your chef will be wielding his knife slicing off the lean, delicious breast meat. For fat-fearful folk, you’ll breath a sigh of relief.

Take the lean meat and enjoy it with the garlic sauce on the table.

Eating the Duck: 3) Leg meat in pancake

By the time you stop waxing prophetic about the breast meat, your chef will have left you with a plate of leg meat – considered the best of all. The leg meat is cut off including the skin so you get a layered piece of meat to enjoy with the rest of the fixings on the table.

To enjoy the leg meat, it is traditional to take one of the pancakes (so that’s what’s in the little bamboo steamer!), add some meat, then some of the chopped up cucumber and leek, and finally add some of that rich dark duck sauce on the table. The duck sauce is a chef specialty and each chef has his own recipe.

 

Wrap everything up like a mini-burrito and tuck in. If you’re really clever, use your chopsticks. If you’re not, go ahead and use your hands – that’s what I do.

Now everything is on the table. The chef has left you and you’re free to enjoy your meal. Feel free to experiment – you don’t have to put the leg meat in the pancake, you can just eat it with different sauces. But at least now you know what you’re meant to do, traditionally speaking. If you’re still peckish, ask for the duck stock. The duck carcasses are turned into soup and some restaurants serve this as the last course, some do not.

 

 

 

 

Eating Bejing Duck at Xindalu Restaurant in Shanghai