A few days ago, my teammates gave another new colleague and me a welcome lunch in a premium Chinese restaurant near the office. One of the dishes that instantly caught my attention was Peking Duck. I’m sure many of you have heard good comments about this dish and how it’s usually served during special occasions.
Now, I’m not particularly fond of poultry in general. I will sometimes eat select fast food fried chicken or chicken inasal, but I’ll always choose the breast part because the flavor is milder or none at all, except if seasoned well. Then again, chicken breast will just taste the same as the seasonings used to flavor it, or the sauce that it’s dipped in. As for chicken legs, it’s the strong flavor that puts my palate off.
Going back to the Peking duck, it looked palatable when finally sliced thinly. I often see it in shows eaten with sauce and vegetables in a wrap. It looks delicious served that way. Plus, I’ve also heard that the skin is super crispy. With all of those thoughts in my mind, my curiosity grew stronger. I murmured in my head, “Wow, hindi pekeng Peking Duck ito!” As if naman may fake na Peking Duck. Of course, I also know it was expensive, so I wouldn’t let the opportunity to try a top-tier dish pass.
Our Chinese colleague taught us how to eat it. Apparently, there were many of us in the team who hadn’t tried it yet. When it was my turn, I got a piece of skin and a slice of duck breast, put it in a wrap, spread hoisin sauce on the meat, and finally added slices of cucumber and scallions on top.
Once wrapped, I put it in my mouth. The flavors were delicious; I’d admit that. The sauce and vegetables went well with the duck. The skin was indeed ultra crispy. However, there was a slight gamey aftertaste, which I didn’t like. I’m sure it was just me since I wasn’t used to eating poultry.
I tried a piece of skin as is, and it was good, save for the slight aftertaste. Interestingly, the rest of the duck was cooked salt-and-pepper style, which was served later on. They said it was good with rice.
Anyway, that was my first time trying Peking Duck. It’s always an adventure to try something new, especially if it’s not something that you are used to doing (in my case, eating). Also, it’s not every day that one gets to try upscale food, although admittedly Peking Duck isn’t something I’ll crave later on.
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