Inner Mongolia and northern China
Whole lamb sections boiled in water with minimal seasoning — salt and sometimes dried ginger or bay leaf — until perfectly cooked, then eaten by hand, pulling meat from the bone. The dish demonstrates confidence in ingredient quality, requiring excellent lamb free of strong lanolin flavour. Served with garlic paste, coriander, and vinegar dip.
Pure sweet lamb flavour with mineral clarity; the absence of masking spices requires excellent ingredient quality
{"Whole joints used — shoulder, ribs, leg — not boneless cuts","Boil in barely salted water; the broth becomes the soup course","Correct doneness: meat pulls cleanly from bone but retains slight pink at centre","Quality lamb imperative — preferably grass-fed Inner Mongolian sheep"}
{"Inner Mongolian lamb is preferred — raised on grassland herbs giving the meat subtle fragrance","The boiling broth should be served as a restorative soup — don't discard","Garlic paste: raw garlic pounded with salt and a little lamb broth — the essential accompaniment"}
{"Over-seasoning the cooking water — masks the lamb quality","Overcooking until meat is grey and falling-off-the-bone instead of precisely cooked","Using inferior lamb with strong lanolin — results in unpleasant gaminess"}
Land of Fish and Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop; Chinese Food — various sources