Peking roast duck is, as one would say in Chinese, “Běijīng de míng cài”. In English…Beijing’s famous dish. It has a history that goes back hundreds and thousands of years to ancient China (specifically the Southern and Northern Dynasties) when the dish, then known as shaoyazi, was served in imperial courts.
We had our inaugural duck experience at the Li Qun Roast Duck restaurant, a slightly out-of-the-way spot tucked in the Qianmen hutong area south of Tianamen Square. After finding our way to the hutong district a very insistent pedicab driver convinced us that we wouldn’t find the restaurant on our own, so my dad and I hopped in. The driver then pointed at Craig and told him to run behind us — apparently he couldn’t fit three.
Our experience at the restaurant was not disappointing. The duck, roasted in traditional wood-fired ovens, was crisped to perfection and served with the standard fare of pancakes, sweet hoisin sauce, cucumber and spring onion. In many restaurants the skin of the duck is served first to diners and eaten with a mixture of sugar and garlic, and truly melts in your mouth.
If you make your way to Beijing this hidden roast duck gem tucked away in the winding hutong streets is definitely a must. If you go be sure to order the fried shredded potatoes with chilis…
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- Crank had to run behind while the pedicab drove me and Dad
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- Li Qun Roast Duck Restaurant
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- OK.
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- Ducks roasting in traditional wood-fire oven
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- Dad, getting ready for the feast
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- Our duck
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- Some noms
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- The shredded potato dish in the background was AMAZING
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- No More Noms!
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- Post-feast
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- In the hutong
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- The Li Qun Roast Duck Restaurant
