Inner Mongolian Cuisine has its own unique style using mutton, milk, wild vegetables and flour based products as its raw materials. Its cooking techniques are relatively simple and roasting is the most commonly used. The original wild and rich taste is its greatest feature.
Famous Inner Mongolian dishes are Roasted Leg of Lamb (Kao Yangtui, 烤羊腿), Feast with Lamb based Dishes (Quan Yang Xi, 全羊席), Grilled Lamb (Shouzhua Yangrou, 手抓羊肉), Sheep Milk Tea (Nai Cha, 奶茶), Horse Milk Wine (Manai Jiu, 马奶酒), Steamed Wild Oat Products (Youmai Mian, 莜麦面), Smoked Chicken, Zhuozishan Style (Zhuozishan Xunji, 卓资山熏鸡), Dried Meat Slices (Rou Gan, 肉干), Hada Sweet and Crispy Cake (Hada Bing, 哈达饼), Sweet and Soft Cakes (Mi Ma Ye, 蜜麻叶), Mongolian Cake (Menggu Liubing, 蒙古馏饼) and Dexing Steamed Pork Dumpling (Dexingzhi Shaomai, 德兴之烧卖).
Main Dishes
Roasted Leg of Lamb (Kao Yangtui, 烤羊腿)
It is a famous dish to entertain the guests of the people of Hulunbei. Roasted leg of lamb derives from Roasted Whole Lamb. It is said that nomadic people of the Northern grassland of China always like to gather around the burning fire to barbecue and eat wild game and cook roast lamb. Gradually, people find that the most delicious part of roasted lamb is the rear legs. Therefore, they always remove the meat from the rear limbs for barbecuing. It is much faster, more delicious and easier to eat barbecued rear limbs compared with barbecuing the entire lamb. Gradually, over the years, Roasted leg of Lamb has replaced Roasted Whole Lamb. With a history of long-term development, this dish has applied various flavourings and side materials making it more tasty and delicious, fresher and more presentable. The roasted leg of lamb tastes tender inside and crispy outside but not greasy. Before sampling it you can smell the fragrance in the air which is extremely enticing.
Its cooking practice is as follows. First, the chef removes the meat from the rear limbs of the lamb making deep grooves in a cross-shaped pattern. Next, the processed limbs are laid into the barbecuing tray with sliced carrot, chopped shallots, chunks of ginger, diced celery and tomatoes and mixed with flavourings such as pepper, cooking wine, soy sauce, fine salt and light soup. Then, the chef roasts the lamb in an oven for about four hours. When the soup has evaporated and the meat has turned dark red, the limbs should be taken out of the oven and served on a plate. Finally, the roast lamb is cut, served to the guests and enjoyed with a glass of red wine.
Feast with Lamb based Dishes (Quan Yang Xi, 全羊席)
The feast is called Xiushi (秀什) or Buhele (不禾勒) which are Inner Mongolia dialect terms and is traditionally used to entertain the distinguished guests of the people of Inner Mongolia. It is the oldest and most ceremonious feast of the Mongolian people. Normally, such feasts are only served at the time of grand events, important gatherings, weddings and receptions of distinguished guests. After being slaughtered and cooked is placed in a wooden tub resembling that of a live lamb lying down. Before eating, a ceremony, such as the singing of a hymn or reciting of verses for the sacrifice will proceed. It is recorded that Genghis khan (Chengji Sihan, 成吉思汗) once held such a feast when Kublai Khan (Hubilie, 忽必烈, Grandson of Genghis khan) ascended the throne, the feast was also served as a sacrifice to the gods and as entertainment for the guests. In Qing Dynasty, the feast became more popular and was served in the Beijing Residence of Duke Luo and the residences of various Mongolia dukes and princes to entertain their guests. As cooking techniques have improved, Feast with Lamb based Dishes has become the prestigious feast of the Mongolian people both at home and abroad.
Smoked Chicken, Zhuozishan Style (Zhuozishan Xunji, 卓资山熏鸡)
The dish is a famous local dish made with fowls of Zhuozi County, with a history of about 60 years. It uses local Bian chicken as the main ingredients, which feed on green grass during spring, insects in summer, grass seeds in autumn and green crops in winter. From year to year, they graze on the natural organic pasture and drink the natural fountain water from the Ninety-nine Spring of Longshan Mountain and by doing so they have produced fresh nutritional chickens. Marinating and smoking are two major cooking processes and a century old secret recipe is used along with 38 types of rare and famous Chinese herbs before being stewed and smoked with rock sugar and fruit trees. Once cooked, the finished dish glows with colour and has a mouth-watering smell that is high in nutrition. It looks bright red, tastes tender and delicious and extremely delightful with an aromatic smell.
Boiled Mutton with Sauce (Shou Ba Rou, 手扒肉)
Boiled Mutton is one variety of traditional Mongolian meat based dishes. In the Mongolian language, it is called Wulanyide (乌兰伊德). As a type of traditional dish dating back dozens of centuries, it has always been the most common food for the herdsmen. To make this dish, one shall first split up the mutton at the joints, place into a saucepan and boil in water until cooked. When you eat the dish, hold the lamb bone, cut the mutton with a knife and dip it into the sauce. According to the herdsman's custom, this dish is normally served as their dinner.
Roasted Loin of Lamb (Jindao Kao Yangbei, 金刀烤羊背)
The dish is only served at the time of ceremonious events by the Mongolian people. Mongolian cooks say that lamb’s loin is the second best thing to lambs leg in terms of meat, thus, the dish is said to be a grand dish. The most delicious white-striped lamb from the Mongolian grassland is selected as the raw materials and marinated for 24 to 36 hours with more than thirty kinds of herbs and natural flavourings like angelica, then roasted for about two hours in specially made furnace. The fuel used must be charcoal from the trees of apricot, peach, Chinese plum or Zhagemu tree grown in the desert. By doing so the lamb retains its original taste and is full of the aroma of grassland herbs. The dish is rich in colour and the meat is delicious. It is golden on the outside and tender inside, crispy but not greasy. It best proves the old saying that even gods want to enjoy the roasted fresh lamb in June.
Braised Cow Penis (Shao Niu Bian, 烧牛鞭)
This dish uses the fresh penis of a cow from the Mongolian grassland, which is cut in the pattern of a chrysanthemum and braised with Chinese wolfberry. The finished dish looks rich in colour and tastes slightly salty but is very delicious. It can also be used as a medicine since it has the functions of nourishing the kidney and lungs and strengthening the body.
Whole Lamb Soup (Quan Yang Tang, 全羊汤)
This is a type of Mongolian soup, also know as Lamb offal Soup (Yang Zasui,羊杂碎). Lambs head, feet and offal are boiled together with other ingredients. Lambs heart, liver, intestines and offal are washed thoroughly, soaked and dried. The main raw materials along with pepper, kaempferia galamga, fennel, salt and other flavourings are boiled and stewed in the pan until cooked. Then, impurities are skimmed from the surface leaving the remaining stew to boil until the bones and meat of the lambs head and feet can be separated. The remaining offal is then taken out of the pan and mashed, shredded or sliced. Lamb oil is added to the pan and fried with shallots, garlic and pepper. Fresh lamb bone soup along with offal soup, fine salt and other flavourings are added and boiled. Finally, the main raw materials are mixed together in the pan. When aromatic flavours are given off the soup is ready. Caraway and Naan Bread (Bai Pei Zi, 白焙子) could be served with the soup. It is fresh, hot and spicy, thick, delicious and deeply popular with the local people.
Milk Curd in Hot Toffee (Basi Naidoufu, 拔丝奶豆腐)
The dish is a famous Inner Mongolian dish cooked with milk curd. Milk curd is sliced and coated with flour before being mixed with egg white, starch and flour and deep-fried in a saucepan. After it turns golden, the deep-fried milk curd is taken out of the pan. Sugar is added and fried until it caramelises and then mixed with milk curd and sesame seeds then served on a tray. It looks golden, tastes delicious and is an excellent dish for a banquet.
Snacks
Drinks
Milk Tea (奶茶)
Milk Tea, pronounced as Su Dan Chai in Mongolian, is a daily drink for the locals as well as something to entertain their guests. Made of brick tea and fresh milk, Mongolia Milk Tea is also famous for its slightly salty taste which is so different from other types of Chinese tea. Dry pastry is often a choice for the Chinese people when drinking Mongolia Milk Tea.
Kumiss (马奶酒)
Kumiss is a unique drink with a unique flavour. The Mongols brew Kumiss with mare’s milk and rice wines, which add a fascinating spicy and sour flavour. Kumiss has shown healing effects to complicated human diseases such as gastric ulcers and tuberculosis.
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