燒鴨
siu1 aap3
Roast duck in Cantonese is 燒鴨 (siu1 aap3).
燒鴨 refers to a dish consisting of a duck that has been cooked in an oven or over fire.
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of the verb 燒 (siu1), meaning 'to roast' or 'to burn' and the noun 鴨 (aap3), meaning 'duck'.
Which one should you use?
You may see 脆皮燒鴨 (ceoi3 pei3 siu1 aap3) used specifically to emphasize the crispy skin of the meat.
How do you pronounce it?
siu1 aap3
Did you know?
- In Cantonese, the word 燒 (siu1) used in 燒鴨 can also mean 'to burn', meaning the same character is used for both 'roasting a duck' and 'burning a house down'.
- In Hong Kong, you will often see 燒鴨 (roast duck) hanging in shop windows. This is not just for display but serves as a visual menu and a signal of freshness to passers-by.
- The pursuit of 脆皮 (ceoi3 pei3) or 'crispy skin' in 燒鴨 is a specific culinary science in Cantonese cooking involving air-pumping the skin to separate it from the fat.
Examples in context
- 我哋今晚去食燒鴨啦！We should go eat roast duck tonight!
- 你食過馳名嘅脆皮燒鴨未呀？Have you tried the famous crispy skin roast duck?
- 間鋪頭有得食好味嘅燒鴨！They serve delicious roast duck at that restaurant.
- 呢份燒鴨好香。ni1 fan6 siu1 aap3 hou2 hoeng1.This roast duck smells very fragrant.
- 我哋去買燒鴨啦。ngo5 dei6 heoi3 maai5 siu1 aap3 laa1.Let's go buy some roast duck.
Example conversation
A couple is deciding what to order for lunch at a restaurant.
- 雅婷 Nga Ting子健，你想食咩呀？zi2 gin6, nei5 soeng2 sik6 me1 aa3?Zi Kin, what do you want to eat?
- 子健 Tsz Kin我想食燒鴨。ngo5 soeng2 sik6 siu1 aap3.I want to eat roast duck.
- 雅婷 Nga Ting好呀，咁我哋嗌燒鴨啦。hou2 aa1, gam2 ngo5 dei6 aai3 siu1 aap3 laa1.Okay, then let's order roast duck.
- 子健 Tsz Kin好，即刻嗌。hou2, zik1 hak1 aai3.Great, let's order it right away.
