JIANG’S DUCK RESTAURANT,
20-1 Jalan PJU 1/3A,
Sunway Mas Commercial Centre, Petaling Jaya.
Tel: 017-370 9232
Business hours: Noon to 2.30pm, 6pm to 9pm, daily.
Closed on alternate Wednesdays.
NOT everyone enjoys eating roast duck but I happen to be a fan of it, thanks to my father and his nose for looking out for the best roast duck in town.
Historically, roast duck has its roots in the Yuan Dynasty where it was said to be an Imperial dish and a favourite among the upper class Chinese in the Qing Dynasty.
Since then, Peking duck has became a must-have dish whenever one visits China, particularly its capital, Beijing.
However, in Malaysia, we are fortunate to be able to find roast duck all year long as well as the Peking duck, which has a crispy skin.
There are many stalls and restaurants selling the delicacy but not all the chefs are as fearful as Low Kok Kee especially during the Chinese New Year festival.
I happened to drop by his shop in Aman Suria a week before the Lunar New Year with my friend Ng Sze Mun for dinner.
Ng dines here three times a week after his morning run.
The grandfather of one recommended the outlet several times but we only managed to meet up recently to try his favourite roast.
Instead of having it with rice or noodles, Ng suggested we begin our feast in a different style, with a glass of beer in hand for a start.
As we were digging away into the platter of roast duck I was slowly told of Low’s fear during the festive period.
“It is a good type of fear, I don’t get to sleep for one day in a year.
“My roasting oven works round the clock a day before the eve of Chinese New Year,” he said, adding that he has to roast about 700 ducks in time for reunion dinners.
The soft spoken 54-year-old said he has been supplying roast ducks for more than two decades to restaurants around the Klang Valley but the idea of opening one of his own only came by much later.
Low’s flavourful Braised Duck which is only available on certain days of the week.
To date, he sells about 800 roast ducks weekly with four other types sold only in his restaurant; steamed duck, herbal duck, braised duck and pei pa duck with each whole duck priced reasonably at RM45.
Unlike most roast ducks which are served with a bowl of sauce, Low’s secret recipe gives the duck enough flavour of its own that I totally forgot about the sauce.
Although he did not part with the recipe, it is obvious that the seasoning and preparation are important to ensure the duck absorbs all the ingredients and comes out with a crispy skin after roasting.
Low cleans and marinates the duck and then lets it to dry for at least six hours before roasting it in his charcoal oven.
A week later, I returned to his shop to tapau (takeaway) a roast duck and was glad my father gave his seal of approval and was curious how he did not know of Low’s outlet prior to my visit.
VILLAGE ROAST DUCK,
Bangsar Village 1,Jalan Telawi 1,
Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03 2287 4128
Business hours: 11am- 10pm, daily.
Whenever I am in Bangsar, I would drop by this place because it serves roast pork with the leanest portion I could ask for but they also have roast duck and barbecue pork on the menu.
Sporting a better ambience, this restaurant certainly has a higher price tag to go with it, so if you are planning to splurge a little and want to dine in an air-conditioned place, this is it.
Tasty: A portion of the boneless roast duck to go with a plate of plain wantan noodles from Village Roast Duck.
The restaurant in Bangsar Village is usually packed and customers can be seen waiting for tables outside while watching the chefs chop the roasted delicacies behind the glass window at the entrance.
My usual order would be a plate of two combination roast meat (roast duck and roast pork) paired with a bowl of plain wantan noodles.
If you are dining with friends, you can opt for a larger portion of each roast meat.
During lunch recently with a close friend, we ordered a portion of roast duck and roast pork with two bowls of noodles.
We also went with the option of having our roast duck boneless as we were lazy to deal with bones.
Yes, isn’t that amazing? I can’t remember if anywhere else has such an option.
To me, it was the best idea the restaurant could offer.
Unlike Jiang’s, the duck here is not marinated the same way, hence it appears slightly soggy as it has been doused with the chef’s special sauce but the duck meat remains tender.
The skin of the duck also had only a thin layer of fat so I did not put it to waste.
We had a glass of ice cold herbal tea each before we called for the bill which was RM77.50.
It may be pricier but we agreed that it was a good lunch nonetheless.
The restaurant also serves the famous Peking duck and its pancake wraps, a vast selection of vegetable dishes, fried rice, seafood and dessert.
