Crispy Ducky in Chinatown

Crispy duck and some fixings

Whenever I travel to London I always make it a point to visit Chinatown. The restaurants there are very authentic and reminiscent of the local restaurants of Hong Kong and China. My trip wouldn't be complete without having my favorite Asian appetizer; crispy aromatic duck. This time I stopped at the Four Seasons restaurant in the heart of Chinatown, who are said to have the best in all of England. I'm not sure if this is true or not, but they do make a really tasty duck.

This dish is very similar to Peking duck for those who are familiar. The duck is first marinated with spices, then steamed until tender, and finally deep fried until crispy. This leaves an amazingly low fat and deliciously crispy skin on meat. In most restaurants here the server brings the duck (whole, half, or quarter size) directly to the table on a platter and uses a fork and spoon to shred it into chunks. Accompanying the duck is a bamboo steamer filled with thin flour pancakes similar to soft tortillas, fresh cucumbers, and a plum sauce similar to but a bit sweeter than hoisen sauce. You're basically left to the task of assembling the given ingredients to your liking, like a make your own taco night. Spread the sauce on the pancake, add a bit of duck and vegetables, wrap and enjoy a mouthful of bliss.