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Food

Beijing Roast Duck Recipe

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Beijing Roast Duck Recipe

Roast duck is an iconic dish in Beijing that has been labelled as “the first dish to taste in China.” Roast duck eventually became a national symbol in China in the 1970’s. To add, quite a number of high-ranking officials and tourists made their points that roast duck has to be one of the best dishes to try in Beijing.

[history]

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Evidence of the existence of roasted duck in China goes way back in Southern and Northern dynasties (420-589). The dish was first recorded with the alliance of imperial court during Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) by a royal dietary physician named Hu Sihui in the form of a cookbook.

 

Although roast duck is named after Beijing, it is originated from Nanjing, which is the former Chinese capital that lies in the eastern part of Jiangsu. The imperial court then moved to Beijing, along with the roasted duck during Ming dynasty’s administration. Hence, roast duck was established as the staple dish in imperial menus. In contrast to that, the roast duck dish was highly praised in writings by scholars and poets in Qing dynasty.

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Main ingredients: 

Duck meat

Boiled-water

Chinese-style maltose syrup

1½ cups

Butter

Main ingredients: 

Duck meat

Boiled-water

Chinese-style maltose syrup

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Directions:

1. Make a small hole on the duck to take out the gut.

2. Then, pour boiling water into the hole and tie the hole up.

3. Put the duck in boiling water for 30 seconds and hang up the duck to let it dry.

4. Once dried, brush Chinese-style maltose syrup on the duck, and hang it in the oven with the water still inside at approximately 270 °C (525 °F) for 30 to 40 minutes or until fully cooked.

Since the duck is full with water, its skin will swell and will not soften when cooked. The most delicious part of the duck is the skin according to the Chinese.

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Gao, S. (2016, December 7). A Brief History of Peking Duck. Retrieved from https://theculturetrip.com/asia/china/articles/a-brief-history-of-peking-duck/

​Hinsbergh, V, G. (2018, November 30). Beijing Roast Duck: History, Recipe, Menu, How to Eat It. Retrieved from https://www.chinahighlights.com/beijing/food/beijing-duck.htm

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