From A Christmas Story · 1983 · Reconstructed
Chop Suey Palace Peking Duck
Serve when
The waiters arrive tableside with the whole duck, head and all, and start singing carols in Chinese-accented English — serve the second Mrs. Parker sees the head still on.
In the movie
Theatrical
- ~01:22:15 With the turkey gone, the Parkers end up at the Bo Ling Chop Suey Palace, where the waiters bring out a whole roast duck, head still attached, and Mrs. Parker recoils — until the waiter obligingly lops the head off with a cleaver at the table.
The whole scene turns on the duck still having its head on — a shock gag the film sells completely straight, right up until the waiter solves it with a cleaver in one clean motion. It's the movie's happy ending: a ruined Christmas dinner replaced by a stranger family's kindness and a truly excellent duck.
Ingredients
Method
- A day ahead, blanch the whole duck briefly in boiling water, then pat completely dry and let it air-dry uncovered in the fridge overnight — this is what gives Peking duck its crackling skin.
- Whisk the honey, rice vinegar, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, and five-spice together and brush the skin all over. Let it air-dry again for an hour at room temperature.
- Roast on a rack at 325°F, breast-side up, for about an hour, then raise the heat to 450°F for a final 15–20 minutes until the skin is deep mahogany and shatteringly crisp and a thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh reads 165°F.
- Rest for 10 minutes, then carve tableside if you can manage it — slice the skin and meat together in strips.
- Serve with warm pancakes, scallions, cucumber, and hoisin, and let your guests build their own wraps.
Beyond the recipe
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