Features: A traditional Mongolian drink made by boiling brick tea and fresh milk with salt. It has a rich flavor, with the fragrance of tea and the mellowness of milk, and a hint of saltiness. Nutrient-rich, it can help replenish energy and keep warm. It is a daily essential drink for the people on the prairie.
Where to Taste: You can taste authentic milk tea in Mongolian yurts on the prairie or local Mongolian restaurants.
Milk Skin
Features: Made from the mixture of fat and milk protein floating on cow or goat milk. Rich in fat and protein, it tastes sweet and delicious with a strong milk flavor. It can be eaten directly or soaked in milk tea until it softens and then eaten, with a unique flavor.
Where to Taste: Sold in local dairy product stores and some Mongolian restaurants.
Cheese
Features: Usually made from fermented cow or goat milk, with various flavors such as original flavor, sweet flavor, and sour flavor. It has a delicate texture and rich milk flavor and is easy to carry. It is a very popular tourist souvenir and snack.
Where to Taste: Can be bought in specialty stores in major scenic spots and some characteristic food stores in the urban area.
Meat Product Series
Hand-held Mutton
Features: The mutton with bones is taken apart according to the joints and boiled in a large pot. Not too many seasonings are added during the process. When eating, it is dipped in seasonings such as leek flower sauce, mashed garlic, and soy sauce, which maximally retains the original flavor of the mutton. The meat is tender and not greasy.
Where to Taste: You can eat it in Mongolian yurts on the prairie or in Mongolian restaurants in Hailar, Manzhouli and other cities.
Roast Whole Lamb
Features: A fat and strong sheep is selected, slaughtered, scalded, dehaired, pickled, seasoned, and then roasted in a special oven with fruit charcoal fire. The outer skin is golden and crispy, the meat is tender and juicy, and the aroma is overflowing. It is a famous dish for the Mongolians to receive important guests.
Where to Taste: Generally, it can be reserved and tasted in relatively large Mongolian restaurants or restaurant in scenic spots with the ability to receive tourist groups.
Instant-boiled Mutton
Features: The mutton in Hulunbuir is of high quality, tender and without a strong smell, so it is very suitable for instant-boiled mutton in a hot pot. Boiled in a copper pot and paired with seasonings such as sesame paste, leek flower, and fermented bean curd, it can fully reflect the deliciousness of the mutton.
Where to Taste: There are many specialized instant-boiled mutton hot pot restaurants in Hailar, Manzhouli and other cities.
Special Staple Food Series
Buryat Baozi
Features: This is a kind of baozi with Russian ethnic characteristics. The fermented dough is wrapped with fillings such as beef and onions. It is round, large, with sufficient filling, thin and chewy skin, and delicious filling with a lot of soup. The taste is very delicious.
Where to Taste: You can taste it in restaurants in places where Russian ethnic groups live in concentrated communities, such as Manzhouli.
Mongolian Guozi
Features: The dough made of flour, milk, eggs, sugar, etc. is cut into small pieces and then fried. It has a golden appearance, a crispy and sweet taste, and can be eaten with milk tea.
Where to Taste: Supplied in Mongolian restaurants or local breakfast stalls.
Route Planning for Food Exploration
Hailar District
Recommended Restaurants
Nuomin塔拉奶茶馆 (Nuomin Tala Milk Tea House): A well-known restaurant in Hailar. The special foods such as milk tea and hand-held mutton are very authentic, and the interior environment also has Mongolian characteristics.
Suolun嘎·五彩涮 (Suolun Ga Wucai Shuan): Specializes in instant-boiled mutton. You can taste various high-quality mutton products for instant-boiling, with a rich variety of seasonings.
Food Exploration Route
For breakfast, you can taste milk tea, Mongolian Guozi, etc. in Nuomin Tala Milk Tea House to start a energetic day. For lunch, go to Suolun Ga Wucai Shuan to enjoy delicious instant-boiled mutton. In the evening, you can find a local Mongolian restaurant to taste special dishes such as hand-held mutton.
Manzhouli City
Recommended Restaurants
Lubuli Western Restaurant: A good place to taste Russian Western food and Buryat Baozi and other special foods. The environment is elegant and the dishes are authentic.
Mengxiang原烤吧 (Mengxiang Yuan Kao Ba): Famous for grilled foods such as roast whole lamb and grilled lamb chops. The mutton is grilled just right and tastes excellent.
Food Exploration Route
For breakfast, you can buy some dairy products such as cheese in a nearby bakery and eat them with bread. For lunch, go to Lubuli Western Restaurant to taste Russian Western food and Buryat Baozi. For dinner, enjoy special grilled foods such as roast whole lamb in Mengxiang Yuan Kao Ba.
Prairie Scenic Spots (such as Jinzhanghan Prairie, etc.)
Recommended Restaurants (generally Mongolian yurt restaurants in the scenic spots)
These Mongolian yurt restaurants offer special foods such as hand-held mutton and milk tea with unique characteristics, allowing tourists to taste authentic prairie food while enjoying the beautiful scenery of the prairie.
Food Exploration Route
During the tour of the prairie scenic spots, choose a Mongolian yurt restaurant in the scenic spot for lunch or dinner to taste foods such as hand-held mutton and milk tea and experience the prairie style. After the tour, you can also buy some dairy products such as milk skin and cheese as souvenirs.
Food Tips
About Price
Generally speaking, the price of hand-held mutton depends on the quality and quantity of the mutton, about 80 120 yuan/jin; the price of roast whole lamb is relatively high. Depending on the size of the sheep, it is usually about 1500 3000 yuan; milk tea is usually sold by the pot, with a price of 20 50 yuan/pot; a portion of Buryat Baozi (ranging from several to a dozen or so) is about 30 60 yuan. The price of dining in the scenic spot may be slightly higher than that in the urban area, so you can choose the dining place reasonably according to your own situation.
Dietary Precautions
The diet in the Hulunbuir area is mainly based on meat and dairy products. For tourists whose stomachs are not very adaptable, they should pay attention to eating in moderation to avoid gastrointestinal discomfort. You can prepare some commonly used medicines such as gastrointestinal medicines. In addition, when tasting mutton and other foods, pay attention to distinguishing the freshness to ensure food safety.
