带你领略令人垂涎的宁夏美食

Yinchuan is the capital city of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The local cuisine features Muslin characteristics but still carries the advantages of Chinese cooking. The mouth-filling flavour can be found in meat dishes, pastries, appetizers and main courses. In today's On the Road, we'll taste the delicacies in Yinchuan and satisfy your craving for delicious food. Here's our guide Ning Yan.

Talking about Yinchuan gourmet food, we first have to mention Ningxia mutton. The unique natural conditions in the dry and warm area have made local water and grass full of minerals. A special breed of sheep called Mudflat Sheep grazes on this special grass, and as a result is tender, refined and odor-free. The mutton is now exported in large quantity to many Islamic countries in the Middle East.

The most alluring of Yinchuan delicacies is mutton cooked under various culinary methods. The most famous is perhaps haggis, a bowl of sliced mutton, vermicelli and diced Chinese pancake soaked in hot broth with chopped chillies and scallion. The savoury soup, tender meat, spicy flavour and low price are listed as the main reasons for its popularity among tourists and local people. It's believed that about one fifth of the people in Yinchuan have haggis for breakfast.

Twenty-four-year-old college student Zhao Zinan speaks with excitement.

"The Ningxia haggis, mutton fat spices, the reddish soup with greenish scallion pieces…the hot savoury dish will stimulate your taste or even get you sweaty. You just can't resist the temptation to have another one."

The main ingredients of haggis come from the many parts of a sheep such as the head, liver, gut and blood. The dish is popular not only for its taste but also its medicinal value as a natural tonic. For example, sheep's liver can improve eyesight and is good for the brain.

Having won the honourable title of the 'national famous Muslin specialty', the haggis has also given inspiration to poets. Xue Gang, head of Ningxia's Tourism Bureau, is a well-known poet in northwest China. He writes about the famed local food embodying his deep love for his home town delicacy.

"A sip of the soup, o spicy!

A bite of the meat, o savoury!

Green is the chopped parsley,

and white is the scallion pieces.

The locals would tell it is tasty,

while the outlanders would keep the feeling forever in their memory. "

The haggis has brought an intimate feeling to visitors as it has become a part of ordinary people's life in Ningxia.

Quick-fried lamb, on the other hand, is famous nationwide for its strong and rich flavour.

Large pieces of fresh lamb, pliable vermicelli, fresh celery minces and condensed sauce bring with the character of boldness and generosity. Quick-fried lamb has become everyone's favourite in Ningxia and a top choice for guests. 40something Duan Guohai gives a vivid description about this homely dish.

"Many people in Yinchuan like lamb because the meat is very tender. Quick-fried with a little chilli, the dish is odour-free because Ningxia chillies help get rid of the mutton smell. When it's done, the dish is perfect in colour, aroma and taste. Many people like to enjoy the dish with guests or family members."

Besides various mutton dishes, all kinds of Muslim pastries also highlight the local cuisine. With a crispy shell and a tender inside, 'Youxiang', or oil pancake, is the most famous.

Youxiang is said to be introduced into China some 700 years ago. Today, the traditional food is still very popular among Muslims in China, especially at weddings and funerals. Yinchuan resident Zhao Jing talks about the taste.

"It is very spongy and delicious. It feels fluffy to chew a piece of Youxiang in your mouth. And it is okay for you to leave it for 10 days or two weeks. The softness will not change."

Zhao Jing says other popular flour-based pastries are actually parts of Youxiang.

"Ningxia's Youxiang includes Bingzi, Sanzi and Huahua. The unleavened dough mixed with white and brown sugar creates the colours of white and black. The coloured dough can be formed into the shapes of butterflies, flowers and small animals."

Sanzi is a traditional pastry loved by Muslims all over the world. However, the Sanzi in Ningxia has always been world famous for its evenness, bright golden color and sweet crispy taste.It has become a holy food for all Hui ethnic groups throughout China.

So, if you want to personally experience the taste of a haggis, the tenderness of quick-fried lamb and the crispness of Youxiang, come to Yinchuan and enjoy it all. More Yinchuan delicacies here await you.