Nanjing's most famous dish is salted duck (盐水鸭), a preparation distinct from Peking duck: the bird is cured in salt and spices, cooked slowly in brine, and served cold, sliced thin. The skin should be slightly firm, the flesh pink and tender, the flavour savoury and delicately spiced with anise and ginger. Nothing is crispy; this is not that kind of duck.
Every neighbourhood has a duck vendor, and the queue at the best ones in the old Confucius Temple area moves all day. The proper way to eat it is with steamed mantou buns or as part of a multi-dish meal. Duck blood soup (鸭血粉丝汤) — broth with rice noodles and cubes of congealed duck blood — is the other iconic Nanjing street food, available at roadside stalls from early morning.