Restaurants / We walk into Fook Yuen at 1am on a Sunday night trying to satisfy my craving for duck–Peking duck, specifically. And there it is, available on Sunday at 1am. Miraculous. The duck is accompanied by three waiters, its skin glistening under harsh fluorescent lights. With the zeal of a trio performing at an Elk’s Club wedding reception, one waiter carves the duck, another assembles the mantou buns while the third serves the table. The first bite into the juicy skin and soft bun instantly brings an avalanche of questions.

What makes Peking duck, Peking duck? How is it different from roast duck? Who invented this dish? How can you tell if it’s authentic Peking duck? And why is it called Peking duck?

Its name, Peking duck, comes from the anglicized pronunciation of Beijing. It refers to the name of the duck’s breed. It was dreamed up during Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368), according to the website [china.org]. Hu Sihui, an inspector of the imperial kitchens, recorded details of the process in 1330. Initially, the dish was created and reserved for royalty. Not until the end of the dynasty era did the dish become widely available in Northern China. But for more than a century now, legions of chefs have specialized in preparing this labor-intensive dish. One Beijing restaurant boasts 1,000 chefs at its themed duck restaurant. There are standards. But authentic preparation? Well, there are also debates. No surprise for an 800-year-old recipe.

Generally, the duck is presented with its head intact. In China, special breeds of force-fed ducks are used. The dish is divided into two (or three) separate courses. One for the pancakes, one for the duck meat and/or (if you happen to live somewhere else) one for a soup or noodle dish. To prepare, the duck is cleaned and the innards removed through a small cut in the skin, then quickly boiled to tighten the skin and pumped with air to separate the skin from the meat. It is rubbed with spices and air-dried for several hours. Some roast with only fruit wood. Some cook in specialized ovens and radiant heat. Some coat with honey, others molasses, others malt sugar. The duck should be handled quickly after roasting. Experts can cut 120 pieces from the skin in five minutes. Tradition says pancakes, not buns. Accoutrements include sauce (hoisin), a scallion (for brushing on the sauce), cucumber and carrot. The duck slices should be consumed quickly and melt in your mouth.

But authentic Peking duck in Honolulu? The venerable dish appears on menus about town, but ubiquitous roasting with fruit woods? Even I’m not that gullible. And why do you have to preorder at most places on the Mainland and not here?

Anthony Chang, who conducts culinary walking tours of Chinatown every Monday, graciously answers my remaining questions. Chang, a food historian and practicing lawyer, clarifies Peking duck’s history in Hawai’i–to the point of disillusionment.

‘Not having many true Northern restaurants here, we don’t have true Peking duck,’ Chang says. ‘We have Peking duck made in the Southern style. There is no authentic Peking duck in Hawai’i, period.’

Uh, OK.

Chang says that the predominant style of cooking in Hawai’i derives from one county in southern China. Early immigrants to Hawai’i came from Zhong Shan, which is located along the famed Pearl River Delta near the city of Guangzhou (Canton). For hundreds of years, this region had more contact with the outside world than any other part of China. The Southern Chinese were maritime people, traveling to and settling in different parts of the world. Nearby European settlements of Hong Kong (British) and Macau (Portuguese) also influenced the cooking style in and around Guangzhou, Chang says.

‘It is the cooking of the Pearl River Delta that is the most varied and flavorful in all of China because you not only have different foods brought back by Chinese travelers, but also by Europeans,’ Chang says.

In Hawai’i, the relatively small Chinese population refined this style to satisfy the palates of natives and other immigrants–Filipinos, Japanese, Okinawans. Narrow menu selection and purist ideals made no economic sense. Chop Suey style and Zhong Shan style did.

In addition to the palates of local diners, Chang says the dish is labor-intensive, and rents are so high in Hawai’i, that it’s considered cost-prohibitive to make Peking duck with traditional methods. So no authentic Peking duck. But what are we in Hawai’i if not adaptable? Buns instead of pancakes? OK. Here are three variations on the theme:

Royal Garden Chinese Restaurant

(Ala Moana Hotel, 410 Atkinson Dr., 942-7788) Royal Garden is known as one of the best Chinese restaurants in town. Chef Chung Leong ‘Johnny’ Wong makes a subtle Peking duck ($40). The duck must be ordered 24 hours in advance, which gave it a bit more cache than the others. The presentation is formal, the setting lovely. The duck had an effused, delicate balance of orange and five spice. The skin–served on buns–was crispy and melting at the same time. A light touch on the hoisin sauce. The only place we tried that served the duck with the head.

Fook Yuen Seafood Restaurant

(McCully Shopping Center, 1960 Kapi’olani Blvd., 973-0168) Sure, we go there for the $10 lobster, but its Peking duck ($36) offers a nice balance of flavor and texture. A little heavier handed, robust and satisfying. And they serve until 3am seven days a week.

Kirin

(2518 S. Beretania St., 946-1888) The skin on this duck ($34) was as crisp as I’ve ever had. Not a melt-in-your mouth quality, but wafer-thin. No presentation, the duck is sliced in the back of the restaurant and is served wrapped in buns with extra hoisin sauce on the side.