Easy Chinese Roast Duck

There is nothing more hunger-inducing than walking past a Chinese BBQ restaurant and seeing the rows of Chinese Roast Duck hanging in the windows. This easy roast duck recipe produces the perfect brown and crispy skin with juicy meat underneath. The secret is to air-dry the duck for 24-72 hours in the fridge.

Can't get enough of duck? Try my Duck Soup Recipe next!

🦆 About This Recipe

Growing up, I remember going to Chinatown with my parents on the weekends and we would always buy half a Chinese roast duck and a box of crispy pork belly. The crispy skin on the roast duck was my absolute favorite part. It was super crispy, had a beautiful brown color, and had not too much fat underneath.

After eating so much of it throughout my life, I wanted to try making it a home.

My first attempt was met with utter failure. I initially tried roasting it without any preparation on the skin, but that was a huge mistake. It ended up not developing any color or crispiness, and the fat layer underneath the skin seemed to be mostly intact. I assume this is because the moisture in the skin prevented it from getting hot enough to render out properly.

My second attempt was much better. I found out that Chinese chefs air-dry their ducks for up to several days to dry out the skin. They typically do this by hanging it outside in the winter, but I was making this in the summer, so I put it in my fridge.

I air-dried it for 48 hours and rotated it every 8 hours so it would dry evenly. The result was much better! The skin was brown and crispy, and the fat layer underneath was nonexistent for most parts. Some areas near the side of the duck still had fat, but I was happy with the result.

🍗 How To Get Crispy Skin?

The key to crispy skin is drying the duck for at least 24 hours and up to 72 hours. I have noticed that many recipes skip this step but it is absolutely necessary if you want brown and crispy skin.

To dry the duck, simply place it on a wire rack in the fridge (place a pan underneath to catch any drippings) and let it rest for 24-72 hours. You want to rotate the duck every 8-12 hours so that it dries evenly. My fridge tends to be colder in the back, so I try to keep it near there.

If you roast the duck without drying it, it will not brown at all. I honestly believe every recipe that says otherwise is just lying so people will make their recipe.

🧂 Ingredients

• Whole duck: Use a duck around 5-6 lbs. If your duck is frozen, let it defrost in its packaging in the fridge for 24 hours before starting the recipe.
• Aromatics: These are stuffed inside the duck so that their aromas permeate the flesh from the inside. You will need ginger, scallions, star anise, and cinnamon stick.
• Marinade: We will rub this all over the inside of the duck. You will need Hoisin sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, and Chinese five-spice powder.
• Glaze: This is brushed onto the duck before roasting. It has maltose, rice vinegar, and salt. Maltose is a type of liquid sugar. You can buy it from most Asian markets, otherwise just use honey.

🔪 Instructions

STEP 1: First, we will prepare the roasting pan. Line the bottom of a roasting pan with aluminum foil. Then, fill the pan with either ½ inch of water or 2 cups of salt. This is to prevent fat drippings from burning and creating smoke. I usually use salt over water because it doesn't produce any steam which can make the skin less crispy.

STEP 2: Now we will prepare the duck. Rinse the duck under cold water. Use a sharp knife to remove the neck and excess fat from the neck and stomach openings. Pat the duck dry inside and out with paper towels and place it on a roasting rack, breast side up.

STEP 3: In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, and Chinese 5-spice powder. Pour this into the duck and rub it all over. Add ginger, scallions, star anise, and cinnamon to the duck cavity, and close the stomach and neck openings with a bamboo skewer.

STEP 4: Transfer the roasting pan and duck to the fridge and refrigerate for 24-72 hours. Make sure to rotate the duck every 8-12 hours so it dries evenly. Once you are ready to roast the duck, remove it from the fridge and let it rest at room temperature for one hour.

STEP 5: In a small bowl, combine the maltose, salt, rice vinegar, and water. Brush all over the duck, front and back. Make sure to get into all the nooks and crannies like between the wings and breast.

STEP 6: Roast the duck in a 400℉ oven on the upper-middle rack for 40 minutes until the skin is golden brown. After 15 minutes, cover the wings with foil to prevent them from overcooking.

STEP 7: Reduce the oven temperature to 350℉. Use a pair of oven mitts and several pieces of paper towel to grip the duck and flip it over. Roast for another 40-50 minutes until it reaches 160℉ at the thigh's meatiest part and 145℉ in the breast. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the duck to rest for 15 minutes before carving.

📋 Recipe

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