Method
- Pat the duck completely dry. Truss the legs and run a long bamboo skewer through the wings to hold them out from the body. Tie a loop around the neck for hanging.
- Bring water to a boil. Whisk in maltose, vinegar and Shaoxing. Pour the hot glaze slowly over the duck three times, catching the runoff. The skin should tighten and turn lacquered amber.
- Hang the duck in front of a fan in a cool place — ideally a fridge with the door cropped open, or a balcony in winter — for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight. The skin must feel dry and parchment-like to the touch.
- Heat the oven to 200°C with a tray of water on the bottom rack to keep the meat from drying. Hang the duck (or set it breast-up on a wire rack) so the air circulates around it. Roast 45 minutes.
- Drop the temperature to 180°C and roast another 30–45 minutes until the skin is mahogany-glossy and crackles when tapped, the leg juices running clear when pierced. If colouring too fast, tent the breast.
- Rest fifteen minutes. Carve off the skin first in flat pieces — this is the prized part — then slice the breast and leg meat. Diners assemble: a pancake, a smear of bean sauce, a piece of skin, a strip of meat, scallion and cucumber, then roll. Eat with both hands.
Common questions
Can Peking Duck be made ahead?
Peking Duck is best made and eaten the same day, but the components can be prepped earlier — chop and measure the ingredients up to a day ahead, refrigerated separately. Final cooking takes about 90 minutes.
Is Peking Duck spicy?
Peking Duck as written is mild to mildly warming — the heat comes from aromatics rather than chili. Add fresh sliced chili or chili oil at the end if you'd like to push it spicier.
Is Peking Duck vegetarian or gluten-free?
This recipe is suitable for most diets. If you have specific restrictions, the substitutions section in each ingredient note covers the most common swaps.
How hard is Peking Duck to make at home?
Peking Duck is more demanding — total time around 150 minutes plus marinating/resting where noted. Specific technique (knife work, wok hei, fermentation) makes the difference between a passable result and the real thing.
Can Peking Duck be scaled up or down?
This recipe is written for 6 servings. To scale, multiply each ingredient proportionally; the cooking times stay the same up to about double the volume. Beyond that, expect to cook in batches because of pan size and heat distribution.
Cultural Note
The dish dates to the Yuan dynasty kitchens of Beijing and was perfected at Quanjude (founded 1864), which still uses orchard-wood ovens. The two-school divide: the open-fire roasted (guà lú kǎo yā) of Quanjude and the closed-oven (mèn lú) of Bianyifang. The skin is meant to be eaten on its own first, sometimes with sugar — a courtesy at banquet meals to acknowledge the cook's labour. The pancake assembly is the everyday format; in formal meals the duck is a multi-course progression ending with bone broth.
