Peking Duck

Peking duck is celebrated above all for its skin: ducks are air-dried, glazed with maltose and roasted until the surface turns crisp, glassy and mahogany. The carver presents paper-thin slices of skin and meat, eaten rolled in delicate wheat pancakes with spring onion, cucumber and sweet-bean or hoisin sauce.

It is theatre as much as food — traditionally carved tableside, the bird is often served in courses.

Roast duck was eaten in China for centuries, but the refined Peking style took shape in the imperial kitchens of the Ming and Qing dynasties in Beijing. Storied restaurants such as Quanjude (founded 1864) standardised the open-oven roasting method and turned the dish into a banquet centrepiece.

Long associated with celebration and prestige, Peking duck remains Beijing's most famous culinary export and a benchmark of Chinese haute cuisine.