mock duck

{{short description|Meat substitute}}

{{about|the food resembling duck meat|the New York gang leader|Mock Duck|the object resembling a duck used in hunting|Duck decoy (model)}}

{{Chinese|picsize=150px|pic=Wheat gluten (vegetarian mock duck) opened can (2007).jpg|piccap=Canned fried wheat gluten ("vegetarian mock duck")|t=燜齋鴨|s=焖斋鸭|p=mènzhāiyā)}}

Mock duck is a gluten-based meat substitute. It is made of wheat gluten, oil, sugar, soy sauce, and salt,{{cite book |last1=Lee|first1=Calvin B. T. |last2=Lee|first2=Audrey Evans |year=2010 |title=The Gourmet Regional Chinese Cookbook|publisher=Askmar Publishing |location=Menlo Park, CA|isbn=978-1-935842-11-8|pages=unknown, recipe "Mock Duck with Snow Peas"}} and is high in protein. Its distinctive flavor and artificial "plucked duck" texture distinguish it from other forms of commercially available gluten products.

Mock duck along with other wheat gluten meat substitutes has origins in the Chinese Buddhist cuisine, dating back to the Middle Ages.{{cite web |last1=Lott-Lavigna |first1=Ruby |title=The Origins of Fake Meat Are Rooted in Chinese Cooking |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-origins-of-fake-meat-are-rooted-in-chinese-cooking/ |website=Vice |access-date=10 March 2021 |date=2019-02-05}} Mock duck can be found in some Chinese grocery stores or retail outlets providing international selections of food. It is most often sold canned.{{cite web |url=https://www.newgumsarn.co.nz/product/vegetarian-mock-duck/ta7804.aspx |title=WU CHUNG Vegetarian Mock Duck 280g |website=New Gum Sarn |accessdate=2021-09-08}}{{cite news |url=https://www.southwestjournal.com/news/2002/08/the-unusual-world-of-asian-groceries/ |title=The unusual world of Asian groceries |author=Scott Russell |newspaper = Southwest Journal |date=August 26, 2002 |accessdate=2021-09-08}} Similar products may be labeled as "Mock Abalone" or "Cha'i Pow Yu" (齋鮑魚; pinyin: zhāibàoyú).

Typically, mock duck gains its flavor from the stewing of the gluten product in soy sauce and MSG.{{cite web |title=Mock Duck |url=https://www.cooksinfo.com/mock-duck |access-date=10 March 2021 |website=CooksInfo.com}}

A variation of mock duck made from tofu skin is also popular, and is known as tofu duck.{{cite web |url=https://www.beanprocess.com/what-is-tofu-skin/ |title=What is Tofu Skin |website=beanprocess.com |date=2021-03-08 |quote=The effect is completed by frying the “skin” side of the tofu chicken until it is crispy. If stuffed with vegetables, it becomes tofu duck. |accessdate=2021-09-08}}