Qinghai is a place where ethnic minorities gather, and the main ingredients are mostly beef and mutton. The snacks here have strong plateau characteristics and ethnic flavors. From cooking to color, aroma, taste, and shape, all have unique local characteristics.
Mutton-Eaten-with-Hands
Mutton-Eaten-with-Hands
Mutton-Eaten-with-Hands needs to be eaten by hand, or hidden knife to cut it. It is fat but not greasy, tender and soft, very delicious. If you don't like mutton, you can also try it, because it doesn't have a strong mutton smell. Making this dish starts with simmering a piece of lamb for a long time until it is so tender that the ribs can be easily separated and the meat falls off the bone. In Qinghai, Mutton-Eaten-with-Hands made by the Dongxiang nationality is deeply loved by people and is indispensable in banquets.
Reference Location: restaurants with lots of locals
Reference Price: about 12.5$ \ half a kilo
Lamb Chop Kangs Pot
Lamp Chop Kangs Pot
Tender northwest mutton, coupled with soft and mellow potatoes, corn cumin, and other materials. I believe you can not wait to taste a bite. To make this dish, the first step is to cook thoroughly lamb chops or traditional stuffed sheep intestines. Add onion, garlic, and ginger to enhance the flavor, then add green pepper and potatoes, and finally sprinkle with ingredients and fire-roasted sesame seeds.
Reference Location: Jiaotong Lane (near the Nanguan Mosque)
Reference Price: About 12.5$ \ half a kilo
Niangpi
Niangpi
Niangpi is a traditional Qinghai snack with strong local flavor. It tastes cool and spicy, usually doused with spices such as vinegar, chili oil, mustard, leeks and garlic. Vendors selling Niangpi can be found everywhere in Xining and towns in agricultural areas. Similar to Liangpi(cold noodles), Niangpi has been praised for its unique production process and flavor. Niangpi is a unique cooked wheaten food, can be used as a staple food, can also be used as a snack, cool and delicious, appetizer to relieve the summer heat.
Reference Location: Xinghai Road Bai Niangpi (Nanguan Street at the back door of Dongguan Mosque)
Reference Price: 1$-1.5$
Sheep Intestine Noodle
Sheep Intestine Noodle
Sheep Intestine Noodle is a common local food in the Xining area. It is made of sheep intestines as the main ingredient and is accompanied by hot soup and noodles. To make this dish, the first step is to wash the sheep intestine and put in scallions, ginger, Sichuan pepper, salt, and other ingredients of the paste bean flour. Finally, put the soup mixed with boiled radish, onion, and garlic in the soup of boiled sheep intestines.
Reference Location: Zheng Qing Sheep Intestine Noodle (Anning Road, Chengzhong District)
Reference Price: 2.7$
Yak Yogurt
Yak Yogurt is a kind of milk product unique to Tibetan families in the Qinghai area. It is made of milk refined with ghee. It is rich in nutrition and helps digestion and thirst quenching. Its sweet and sour taste makes it a nutritious summer drink.
Reference Location: Xinghai Road ( Nanguan Street at the back door of Dongguan Mosque )
Reference Price: 0.42$-0.83$
Sweet Fermented Grains
Sweet Fermented Grains
Sweet Fermented Grains are a kind of traditional sweets liked by people of all ethnic groups in Qinghai. It is mostly brewed with naked oats and highland barley as raw materials, which can not only adjust diet, but also provide guests, and is quite popular with the masses.Eating it in summer can refresh the mind and remove tiredness; Eating in winter can strengthen the body and warm the stomach, and increase appetite.
Reference Location: Xinghai Road Bai Niangpi (Nanguan Street at the back door of Dongguan Mosque)
Reference Price: 0.5$-0.7$
Qinghai Local Hot Pot
Qinghai Local Hot Pot
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has a cold climate and is rich in cattle and sheep. The soup base of hot pot is generally made of stewed mutton soup with a little sauerkraut. If you like spicy food, it will suit your appetite more. Qinghai Local Hot Pot has a spicy taste, but the soup is natural and mellow; Take a bite, the deliciousness of mutton and the refreshment of sauerkraut are perfectly combined, and there is no greasy feeling at all.
Reference Location: Yinma Street, Haihu New District
Reference Price: 15$
Kun Pot Steamed Bun
Kun Pot Steamed Bun
Kun pot steamed buns are baked in metal kun pot molds. Kun pot steamed bun is to rolling vegetable oil into leaven dough, smearing red yeast, turmeric, sweet bean powder, and other folk food colors, and then rolling them layer by layer into red, yellow, and green dough intertwined. It is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
Reference Location: restaurants with lots of locals
Lamb Kebabs
Lamb Kebabs
Lamb Kebabs are made of fresh mutton. First, cut into thumb-sized slices, and prepare a seasoning solution skewered on skewers, dipped in soy sauce, refined salt, ginger powder, paprika powder, pepper powder, star anise powder, and other condiments. Then put lamb kebabs in a special rectangular oven. Bake over fire in the oven, turn it continuously, brush the seasoning solution at any time, and roast until the surface is crisp and yellow, and the meat is thoroughly cooked.
Reference Location: Gazhangwa in Haihu New District
Reference Price: 0.5$
Hand-pulled noodles
Hand-pulled noodles
This dish is a staple of Qinghai cuisine and can be found in most local restaurants. The noodles are made by stretching and pulling the dough by hand. They have a chewy texture and are usually served with meat and vegetables in a spicy broth.
Reference Location: restaurants with lots of locals
Reference Price: 1.4$-2$
