Step 1 of 9
Pat the duck dry inside and out. Rub the cavity with salt, five-spice, ginger, and the crushed spring onion whites. Truss the cavity closed.
Step 2 of 9
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Hold the duck by the head or neck and pour boiling water over the skin all over, 4–5 ladles per side. The skin should tighten visibly. Pat dry.
Step 3 of 9
Whisk maltose, rice vinegar, Shaoxing, and dark soy in a saucepan and warm just to dissolve. Brush all over the duck, paying attention to the breast skin. Repeat 3 times, letting each coat dry.
Step 4 of 9
Hang the duck breast-side-out in a cool, well-ventilated spot — in front of a fan or, faster, with a hairdryer on cool — until the skin is dry to the touch and faintly leathery. A hairdryer takes 30 minutes; air-drying takes 12–24 hours in front of a fan in the fridge.
Step 5 of 9
Heat oven to 200°C / 400°F. Place the duck breast-up on a rack over a roasting tray with 1 cm of water in the bottom (catches drips, prevents smoking). Roast 30 minutes.
Step 6 of 9
Drop oven to 180°C / 350°F. Continue 50–60 minutes, basting twice with the glaze that's left, until the skin is deep mahogany-brown and crisp and the juices run clear.
Step 7 of 9
Crank oven to 230°C / 450°F for a final 8 minutes for the last crackle. Rest the duck 10 minutes.
Step 8 of 9
Carve: take the crisp skin off in flat strips first — this is course one. Slice the breast meat thin and the leg meat into pieces. Pile separately.
Step 9 of 9
Steam the pancakes 3 minutes. Serve at the table: brush a pancake with hoisin, lay skin + meat + cucumber + spring onion green, roll, eat with hands.
Ingredients 12
the bird
- 1 whole Pekin duck, 2.2–2.5 kg, with head and feet on if possible
- Thumb of ginger, crushed (for the cavity)
the glaze
- 3 tbsp maltose syrup (or honey)
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
the rub
- 1 tsp Chinese five-spice
- 2 tbsp coarse sea salt
the serve
- 1 bunch spring onions, white parts crushed (for the cavity), greens julienned (for serving)
- 1 small cucumber, julienned
- 24 Mandarin pancakes (thin steamed wheat pancakes)
- 120 ml hoisin sauce