Uyghur cuisine reflects the cooking styles of many ethnic groups of the Xinjiang region and refers particularly to Uyghur cuisine. Signature ingredients include roasted mutton, kebabs, roasted fish and rice. Because of the Muslim population, the food is predominantly halal. Xinjiang cuisine is found throughout much of China, as migrants from the region often open Xinjiang restaurants or food stands in other regions. The Herembagh franchise serves Uyghur cuisine.
Ethnic composition
Ethnic groups in Xinjiang generally have different cooking and eating methods. Han people in Xinjiang use chopsticks, while Kazakhs eat with their hands. Ceremonial foods for certain groups include horse milk for the Kyrgyz and sheep entrails for the Sibe. The dishes of the Dongxiangs are prominent in Xinjiang-style restaurants. Signature Dongxiang dishes include noodles boiled in a thick mutton soup and steamed twisted rolls. The Uyghurs form a large part of the population of Xinjiang, their food therefore dominated the region. Uyghur food is characterized by mutton, beef, camel, chicken, goose, carrots, tomatoes, onions, peppers, eggplant, celery, various dairy foods and fruits. A Uyghur-style breakfast is tea with home-baked bread, smetana, olives, honey, raisins and almonds. Uyghurs like to treat guests with tea, nan and fruit before the main dishes are ready. Most Uyghur foods are eaten with chopsticks, a custom that was adopted from Han Chinese culture in the 19th century.
Primary dishes
Many Uyghur dishes are also found among other ethnic groups in Central Asia, and their food also shows Han Chinese influence. In particular, the Han introduced many vegetables to the Xinjiang diet, as are reflected in Uyghur loanwords for vegetables like xuangga and chäyza. Prestigious meals at urban Uyghur life events, such as wedding banquets, typically feature food cooked using Han techniques like so säy. Chinese dining etiquette is also followed in Ürümqi: a meal will start with liang säy and issiq säy served family style.
Noodle
A common Uyghur dish is laghman or leghmen, a noodle dish thought to have originated from the Chineselamian - it has been noted that words that begin with L are not native to Turkic, therefore "läghmän" is possibly a loanword from Chinese. However, the flavor and preparation method of leghmen are distinctively Uyghur. It is a special type of handmade noodle, made from flour, water and salt. The dough is divided into small balls and then stretched by hand. The noodles are boiled until very soft and then served topped with stir-fried meat and vegetables in meat stock.
Rice
Another typical Uyghur dish is polu, a dish found throughout Central Asia. In a common version of the Uyghur polu, carrots and mutton are first fried in oil with onion, then rice and water are added, and the whole dish is steamed. Raisins and dried apricots may also be added.
Breads
The bread commonly found in the Central Asia is a baked flatbread known as nan, using sesame seeds, butter, milk, vegetable oil, salt and sugar. Girde is also popular; it is a bagel-like bread with a hard and crispy crust. Sangza are crispy fried wheat flour dough twists, a holiday specialty. Samsa are lamb pies baked using a special brick oven. Yutaza is steamed multi-layer bread. Göshnan are pan-grilled lamb pies. Pamirdin are baked pies with lamb, carrots, and onions stuffed inside. Shorpa is lamb soup. Other dishes include Toghach and Tunurkawab.
Meat
Other dishes include soups made from lamb or chicken and Kawaplar made from lamb or beef. Kawaplar is seasoned with chili powder, salt, black pepper and cumin are eaten with the skewer to the mouth, gripping the kebab closest to the end with one's teeth and sliding it off the pointed edge into one's mouth. A popular Xinjiang dish is dapanji, which is literally translated as "big plate chicken." It is a spicy hotchicken stew served on a big plate and after the chicken has been eaten, wide flat hand-pulled noodles are added to the gravy. The dish gained popularity in the mid-to-late 1990s, and is said to have been invented in Shawan, northern Xinjiang by a migrant from Sichuan, who mixed hot chili peppers with chicken and potatoes in an attempt to reproduce a Sichuan taste.
Spices
Spices include cumin seeds, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper. Sultanas and the fat of meat are also used for flavoring dishes.
Beverages
s include Chinese black tea, kvass and other bottled drinks available in other areas of China. Another common beverage is the locally produced Xinjiang black beer, known to be stronger in flavor than other local Chinese beers. It is shipped throughout China. Grapes are grown in the Xinjiang region, which are used for wine production and other grape products. In Turfan, wine is an important part of the local economy and was known in the Tang dynasty. The wine, called museles, is commonly made and used by the locals and is also produced commercially for export outside the region.
Desserts
While it is different from Middle Eastern phyllo dough made baklava, the same appellation is used for Uyghur nut cake. Dates, raisins, walnuts, and syrups are the ingredients of the nut cake.
