Day Four: Beijing Duck
January 24, 2007

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Veggierolls We asked some of our hosts what food we should try while we were here in Hong Kong. (I already had my own list, but I wanted to hear what they had to say.) One item they unanimously endorsed was Peking Duck, which half of them, in particular the one guy from Beijing, called Beijing Duck. "It's not as good as the duck in Beijing," he said, "but it is better than what you can get in your Chinatown." So it was decided. Tonight Joe and I, along with five or six of our hosts, would go out for Peking -- I mean Beijing -- Duck.

The whole experience was typical of the scale of Hong Kong. The taxi drove past a glowing sign that said "Pacific Place" in what seemed like twenty-foot-high letters. It stopped in front of a skyscraper that was probably 30 stories tall. We all got out and walked into the front doors, and it turns out that the skyscraper sits atop a giant mall that's 3 stories deep. Once inside the mall, we walked for what felt like fifteen minutes to find the restaurant. Ludicrous!

 We arrived at a giant restaurant that was split into two halves: Sichuan Garden and Peking Garden. I kept expecting teams of waiters to come out of the back, snapping their fingers, preparing to engage in ritualistic combat: call it East Side Story.

Beefslices I found the food to be very distinctive and absorbing. The vegetable roll was a medley of interesting textures. The thin slices of pressed beef (pictured) were fascinating. The whole sweet and sour fish was masterful: the sauce was thick and sweet without being cloying, the fry was perfectly crisp despite the sauce, and without overcooking the fish.

And the Beijing Duck was great. You eat it with little pancakes, making a roll out of it and a little sauce, and some vegetables. It's a lot of fun, but in a way all of those other items mask the best features: the dense flavor of duck and its fat, and the crispy, tasty skin of a perfectly made Beijing duck. And the skin of this duck was better than any duck I've had.

Just like at lunch today, another understated dish made an impact: this time an array of perfectly cooked mushrooms in a very light sauce. The way that these "minor" dishes are perfected in Chinese cuisine in Hong Kong is very humbling, even more so than the grand dishes we all celebrate. Sometimes all it takes is a plate of mushrooms to make you feel glad to be alive.

January 24, 2007 in Hong Kong | Permalink

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