Hohhot Cuisine

Hohhot is populated mainly by Mongol, Hui and other ethnic groups. Ethnic influences are reflected in people’s daily diet. Being the descendent of herdsmen, people have their unique diet which is characterized by White Food and Red Food. White Food refers to milk products that are made from milk of horse, sheep, cattle, and camel, including raw milk, yoghourt, milt wine, milk tea, vrum, cheese, butter biscuit, cream, and milk cake. Red Food is the general name of meat products that are made from mutton, lamb, beef and some wild lives.

Mutton

Mutton dominates the menus of Hohhot restaurants. No one leaves Hohhot without eating mutton. Ranging from Instant-Boiled Mutton to Roast Whole Lamb, mutton of different flavors can be found in Hohhot.

---Roast whole lamb (烤全羊)
Roast Whole Lamb is the most remarkable and mouthwatering dish. The whole lamb is roasted on flames with rustling sounds, flowing oil and aromatic scent.

---Instant Boiled Mutton (涮羊肉)
Instant boiled mutton means mutton is sliced and put into a hot pot with sesame sauce, caraway and so forth seasoning.

---Hand Hold Meat (手把肉)
Hand Hold Meat has been served as a dish to entertain guests. Mutton is boiled without use of any ingredient. You can soak it in condiment.

--- Roasted Mutton Leg (烤羊腿)
Roasted mutton leg is cooked by salting and roasting.

Oats noodles (莜麦面)
Oats noodles are the staple food here. It is said that oats noodles must be fried, scalded, and steamed. Oats noodles can keep people full for a long time and therefore are deeply loved by people. More importantly, it has good nutrition. Eating methods are varied in different season. In spring and summer, it is served with cool dish, in autumn and winter with soup and hot dish. 

Shaomai Dumpling (烧麦)
Shaomai dumpling in Hohhot is different from that of other places in that the stuffing is mutton or lamb. Steamed Shaomai dumpling is fresh and tasty.

Milk tea (奶茶)
This kind of milk tea is made from boiled black tea and fresh milk, being a traditional Mongolian tea.

Fried noodles (油炒面)
Noodles are fried with oil, sesame, peanut, melon seeds and so forth, more importantly. It is storable. It is tastier after being soaked in sugar water.