What to Eat

Local staple in Datong is mainly noodles and other food made of flour. In addition to the commonly seen Shanxi Noodles, various local snacks may give you a different experience of taste.

Yangza Soup: Yangza Soup is quite a popular snack in Shanxi for its strong flavor. 'Yangza' is the entrails of a sheep. The clean dressed entrails are stewed and cut into slices, then again stewed with shallot, chilli, salt and other flavorings. That is the Yangza Soup. Some vermicelli made of Chinese yam flour is usually added into the soup. From the view of Chinese medicine, entrails of sheep have the function of warming the stomach and fending off chill. Thus, the steaming Yangza Soup with chewy vermicelli may be quite a good dish in winter for its medical function as well as the strong fragrance.

Ya Jiu Qiezi: 'Qiezi' is eggplant; 'ya' means 'press'; 'jiu' is leek. The Ya Jiu Qiezi is a kind of pickle. The eggplant are steamed after making several incisions on it; lay the steamed eggplant between two boards and put some heavy objects on the upper board to press the water out of the steamed eggplant; then mix it with some garlic, leek, ginger and some other flavorings and, pickling for three months, the Ya Jiu Qiezi is ready. With quite a refreshing taste, it is not bad a dish for spring and summer.

Zha Yougao (Fried Yellow Rice Pie): Zha Yougao is a kind of important dim sum in Shanxi. It is a must for local people during the New Year days or other important festivals. The steamed half-dried yellow rice dough is kneaded until smooth while it is hot, divided into small blocks and wraps the black sugar, dates or bean paste in the small blocks of dough. Then they are fired to a golden color. These fried yellow rice pies are eaten with some sugar. The crisp outside and soft sweet inside may give you an impressive taste.

Yingzhou Niuyao (Yinzhou Kidney): It is the local snack of Ying County in Datong. Though called kidney, it is just a kind of fried food made of flour. The dough used in Yingzhou Niuyao is made from flour and syrup but not water. After frying, the color and appearance is much like kidney. It is thus called Yinzhou Niuyao. With soft and sweet taste, this snack is much popular in Ying County.

Liangfen (Cool Agar): Liangfen is made of potato flour or Chinese yam flour. It is a bit softer than vermicelli and chewier than common noodles. The liangfen can be blocks as well as strips according to people's liking. Adding in salt, bean sauce, vinegar, chilli oil and some shredded cucumber and caraway, the liangfen tastes much cool and refreshing.

What's more, Shaomai (Pork Dumplings) in Datong is also worth mention. As one of the main dishes in the feast of Datong, Shaomai satisfies people's appetite by its flower-like appearance and strong flavor meat stuffing.