Chinese Roast Duck (烤鸭)

Chinese roast duck (烤鸭) is a whole duck seasoned, air dried, and roasted until the skin turns thin and crackly over tender meat. Mine is the Cantonese version (广式烧鸭), carved with the bone in and served with plum sauce rather than sliced thin and rolled into pancakes like a banquet Peking duck. I break down the difference between the two styles further below.

I developed this recipe with my teammate Jean-Luc, who lived in Hong Kong and trained at the roast duck station in Cantonese restaurants, so he knows the techniques behind this dish inside and out. Together, we adapted the recipe for a typical home kitchen using ingredients readily available in the US, so you can enjoy authentic Cantonese restaurant-style roast duck without needing special equipment or hard-to-find ingredients.

A beautifully carved roast duck with perfectly crispy skin makes an impressive centerpiece for any celebration, whether you’re celebrating Chinese New Year or hosting a dinner party. Growing up in Beijing, my childhood memories are filled with the joy of delicious duck dishes with friends and family.

From Peking duck to Cantonese roast duck, duck has always been one of my favorite dishes to order at restaurants. I was fortunate enough to enjoy it often while growing up, so my expectations are pretty high! That’s why it took me years to finally develop a Chinese roast duck recipe I’m really proud to share. It has even become one of my favorite Asian Thanksgiving recipes. I hope you try this one at home and be sure to watch my video and read my tips below for the best results.

What do you need

Below, I explain in detail all the ingredients I use to make this Chinese Roast Duck recipe. I’ve taken the time to explain why each ingredient matters and the role it plays in creating a delicious flavorful dish. I highly recommend reading through this section before you start so you can achieve the best results and serve a homemade meal your family and loved ones will enjoy.

Red fermented tofu

Fermented Tofu (酱豆腐, 腐乳, jiang dou fu, fu ru) is also known as fermented bean curd or preserved tofu. There is white fermented tofu (白腐乳) and red fermented tofu (红腐乳). And we will be using the red type in this recipe. Fermented tofu has a soft and spreadable texture, and a salty and savory taste resembling that of certain cheeses.

You can find this ingredient in Chinese grocery stores or on Amazon. It’s a key ingredient for this recipe and cannot be replaced. 

Vinegar, wine and syrup

Traditionally, Chinese red vinegar, maltose, and rose wine are used in roast duck. The vinegar and maltose are ingredients in the blanching liquid, and their purpose is to add color to the duck skin. The wine is for marinating. I replaced them with apple cider vinegar, brown sugar syrup, and Shaoxing wine, because I prefer not to include ingredients that I use only very occasionally.

However, if you do have these specialty ingredients at home, feel free to use them!

Plum sauce

Plum sauce, or 苏梅酱, is a sweet and sour sauce that is often served with roast duck in the Cantonese region of China. For me, this is my favorite sauce to serve with Cantonese roast duck because the sour sweet flavor balances and adds a great touch to the crispy skin and savory meat. You can find it at regular grocery stores these days and in most Asian markets. I really like the Koon Chun brand, which has more aromatics in it and tastes lightly spicy.

If you don’t have this sauce, you can also serve the roast duck with hoisin sauce as an alternative.

How to Make

Trim and clean the duck

Remove any giblets and neck pieces from the cavity, and tear off the excess fat inside the bird. Cut off the wings through the joints so the duck is easier to maneuver during blanching and roasting, and keep the drumettes on. Save the wings for stock later with the leftover bones. If you are using a headless duck, cut off the skin attached to the neck area.

Tip: Use your hands or a pair of fish tweezers to pluck any obvious feathers from the skin.  

Seal the neck

Thread a skewer through both layers of the skin at the front of the duck. Tie kitchen twine under the skewer to close it off. The top must be sealed before you add any marinade, so it stays in the cavity. These are the 5.9” skewers I use for reference.

Add the marinade

Combine the wet seasonings in a small bowl, mashing the fermented tofu so it blends in. Rub the dry seasonings inside the cavity with your hands, then add the aromatics, packing them in snug. Carefully pour in the wet seasonings last, holding the duck so nothing leaks out.

Seal the tail

Thread a skewer through both layers of skin at the tail to close the cavity, then tie butcher twine under the skewer. Hold the duck at an angle while you work so the wet seasonings stay inside.

Air pump the duck

Place the duck breast side up. Insert the pump needle where the leg meets the breast and pump air in to separate the skin from the meat as much as possible. Switch to the other side to lift all the skin. Then insert the needle from the top of the breast pointing toward the leg, and pump again to lift the breast skin. Repeat on the opposite side. This is the step that makes the skin crispy.

Blanch the duck

Set a tray lined with a wire rack within reach, one that fits in your fridge. Bring all the blanching ingredients to a boil in a big wok, Dutch oven, or large pot over medium high heat, then drop to medium. Lower the duck in and ladle the hot liquid over it until the skin tightens and smooths out, about 30 seconds. Lift the duck with a spider strainer onto the lined tray.

Marinate and air dry the duck

Once the duck has cooled off, store it uncovered in the fridge. You need to air dry the duck for at least 24 hours. Most Chinese restaurants air dry their ducks for a few days before cooking. Blanching helps to sanitize the skin, so you can safely age the duck. 

Once air dried, the duck skin will become a bit darker. You will also see more fat seep out of the skin. Use paper towels to wipe the duck skin before roasting to remove any oil or moisture.

Roast the duck

Roast the duck at 450°F (232°C) for a total of 20 minutes, and at 350°F (176°C) for another 30 to 50 minutes depending on the size of your duck. If you use a small duck, a total of 50 minutes roasting will cook it through. On the other hand, you will need to roast the duck longer at 350°F (176°C) if your duck is on the larger side (more details in the recipe below). 

The high temperature roasting develops the color of the duck. The low temperature roasting further develops the skin color and cooks the meat through. Remember to rotate the duck every 10 to 15 minutes, so both sides will brown evenly (the rear section of the oven is usually hotter than the area near the door).

If your oven has a convection function, use it and lower the temperature by 25°F. This further dries the duck skin and roasts it more evenly. Unfortunately I don’t have convection so my duck ended up with some uneven spots. 

Test doneness

Once done, the duck skin should have a nice golden brown color. I used apple cider vinegar instead of Chinese red vinegar, so the skin was slightly lighter than the restaurant duck. 

To test the doneness, insert a paring knife into the thickest part of the duck breast then press the knife against the skin. If the juice runs clear, the duck is cooked. If red or pink juice runs out, you need to keep roasting the duck.

At this point, the duck meat will be very moist and the part attached to the bone may still be a bit pink. Once you fully rest the duck, the residual heat will cook the duck a bit more. 

Rest the duck

Rest the duck for at least 40 minutes, up to 1 hour, once roasted.

This resting step is super important and cannot be skipped. When the duck is just roasted, the inside is piping hot and it will be impossible to carve it without risking burning your hands. Resting also helps to seal the juice within the meat, which creates a better texture.

Drain the cavity

Once the duck is cool enough to handle, set a big bowl ready. Untie the tail, remove the skewer, and cut through the sealed skin to open the cavity. Tip the duck over the bowl to drain all the liquid, then fish out the solid aromatics. The inside stays very hot, so work carefully. Remove the twine and skewer from the neck too.

Carve the duck

Cut where the leg meets the breast, find the thigh bone joint, and cut through it to remove the leg. Separate the drumstick from the thigh at the joint. Then cut down the center of the breast to remove both breast halves.

Reheat before serving (optional):

You should always roast the duck the day you plan to serve it. Chinese roast duck tastes the best when it’s served warm. It’s possible to prepare it slightly ahead of time and quickly reheat it right before serving. But as soon as the duck goes into the fridge, the skin becomes very soggy and it can’t really be saved. 

If you are not serving right away, or the skin got wet during draining and carving, this step brings back the crunch. Heat the oven to 450°F (232°C), set the carved pieces skin side up on a wire rack over a baking sheet, and heat 5 to 10 minutes until the skin crisps again. Slice the breast into 1/2 inch pieces and plate with the legs and thighs. Serve hot or warm with plum sauce or ginger scallion sauce.

How I like serving a Chinese roast duck

My favorite way to eat this is the Cantonese way, plated with a side of plum sauce. For a full Cantonese BBQ (烧腊) platter, I place the duck next to char siu pork, siu yuk, and soy sauce chicken so everyone can mix and match. To make it a full meal, I add a green vegetable like Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce or choy sum with garlic sauce, a bowl of shrimp fried rice, and sometimes a Cantonese wonton noodle soup to round the table out.

In Hong Kong the duck usually comes with a brown sauce made from the reduced marinade, but I find it too salty and it masks the delicate meat, so I serve ginger scallion sauce instead.

You can also eat it like Peking duck with mandarin pancakes (or gua bao buns). You can get both from the freezer section of a Chinese grocery store. I also have recipes for mandarin pancakes and steamed bao buns. For the sauce, the most authentic one is Tian Mian Jiang (a dark brown sauce made with fermented flour, salty and slightly sweet). Or you can use hoisin sauce as an alternative. 

When there is leftover duck, I pan fry the pieces to re crisp the skin, then fold the meat into a chicken fried rice in place of the chicken, skipping the chicken marinade.

Frequently Ask Questions