At Peking Duck banquets in Asia servers will ask if diners want to eat the meal yi ya san chi, meaning one duck with three ways of eating it. That way the whole duck is not wasted after its crispy skin has been carved out.
In yi ya san chi in Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong, any meat left on the duck is removed and fried with bean sprout. Then in the third dish, the bones are used to make duck soup. In Beijing, they also do a Black Pepper Duck with the meat and bones chopped up.
So the next time you go for Peking Duck, bring home the bones. Peking Duck restaurants expect diners to request for whatever is left of the bird.
This soup brings out the rich, roasted duck flavor which makes this soup distinctive. Traditionally, the soup is white in color, with milk added. It’s for aesthetics, I think. I can’t tell the difference in the taste!
Peking Duck Soup
Serves 6
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 2 hours
2 leftover Peking duck carcasses
2 large slices ginger
1 cup onions, sliced
½ pound Napa cabbage, sliced in 1-inch width
⅓ cup milk (optional)
Salt to taste
Split each duck carcass into half. Place duck, ginger and onion in a 5-quart stockpot and fill with 3 quarts water. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer covered for 1½-2 hours until stock is flavorful.
Add Napa cabbage and simmer for another 3-5 minutes until vegetable is limp but not overcooked. Add milk and salt to taste. Remove bones before serving. Serve hot.
Notes
–To reduce oil in soup trim away and discard fat that is in the loose skin of the tail cavity before cooking. Soup may be oily; scoop out oil and discard.
Variations
Different ingredients
–Add tofu, cut in cubes, to the soup and heat for 2-3 minutes just before serving.
