Chinese

Peking Duck

Name: Peking Duck
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 100 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Chinese

Crispy-skinned duck breast served with warm pancakes, hoisin sauce and crunchy spring onion and cucumber — all the flavour of the classic without the whole-bird fuss.

Serves

Prep

mins

Cook

mins

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Ingredients

Pantry bits

4 duck breasts, skin on
2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
1 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
12 Chinese pancakes (or mini tortillas)
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1 Lebanese cucumber, cut into matchsticks
6 spring onions, cut into matchsticks

Instructions

Pat duck breasts dry and score the skin in a crosshatch pattern, being careful not to cut into the flesh.
Rub five-spice and salt over the skin and flesh. Rest uncovered in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or overnight for crispier skin.
Mix honey, soy sauce and Shaoxing wine in a small bowl to make a glaze.
Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced).
Place duck breasts skin-side down in a cold, ovenproof frying pan. Set over medium heat and cook for 8–10 minutes, until the fat has rendered and the skin is deep golden and crisp.
Flip, brush the skin with the honey glaze, and transfer the pan to the oven for 8–10 minutes for medium.
Rest the duck for 5 minutes, then slice thinly.
Warm the pancakes according to packet instructions.
Serve duck with warm pancakes, hoisin sauce, cucumber and spring onion for everyone to assemble their own.

About this dish

Peking duck has a reputation for being a restaurant-only affair, all lacquered skin and elaborate air-drying rituals. This home-style version skips the ceremony but keeps the payoff: shatteringly crisp duck skin, tender meat, and that sweet-savoury hoisin hit wrapped up in a soft pancake.

We use duck breasts instead of a whole bird, which means no special equipment and no multi-day drying process — just a well-scored piece of duck, a hot pan, and a short rest in the oven to render the fat properly.

Serve it the traditional way: warm pancakes, a smear of hoisin, matchsticks of cucumber and spring onion, and let everyone build their own. It's the kind of dinner that feels like an occasion even on a Tuesday.