A Closer Look at Tiger Mama’s Crispy Whole Fried Duck

Photograph by Adam Detour

When Tiffani Faison traveled to Bangkok in 2008, she says it was like touching down on another planet. Scooters whizzed by like swarms of bees, children hawked Buddhist temple flowers, and a man casually ambled down the street with a baby elephant in tow. Seven years and several sabbaticals later, Faison is on the cusp of opening her second restaurant, Tiger Mama, dedicated to the two dozen or so best meals from those Southeast Asia excursions. Located on the same Fenway block as Sweet Cheeks, Tiger Mama will offer Faison’s takes on everything from curry puffs to this crispy whole fried duck.

• The duck is marinated in a combination of ginger, garlic, scallions, fish sauce, and Shaoxing wine, smoked for four hours, and then fried.

• Most of the accompanying herbs (Thai basil, mint, cilantro) are grown on a green wall within the restaurant.

• “They’re almost like Chinese English muffins,” Faison says about her buttermilk-based interpretation of rou jia mo buns.

1363 Boylston St., Boston, 617-266-1300.