Is it a duck? Is it an egg?

It's not a riddle, it's an ancient, somewhat misunderstood Asian delicacy

A long time ago, on a smallholding in the rich Jiangnan farmlands, a farmer went about his early morning egg-collecting chores. As he sought out the nooks and crannies on the farm, he suddenly discovered a well hidden nest where the mother duck had obviously been brooding.

Curious, the farmer went nearer and examined the eggs. They seemed to be all fertilized, and he decided a new brood of ducklings was definitely on the way. There were too many eggs in the nest, so he decided to remove a few, with the vague idea of getting another duck to incubate them.