Cuisine of Xinjiang

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The Cuisine of Xinjiang is the food of the Uyghurs (Uyghur Yemekliri), known for cooking fiery lamb kebabs and homemade noodles. As Uyghurs are moderate Sufi Muslim Turks, the food is predominantly halal.

Xinjiang Region has the highest longevity rate in China. It has 25% of the total of centenarians in China. In October, 1985, the area was listed as The World Longevity Area by the International Natural Medical Science Committee in Tokyo, Japan. According to researchers, the reasons for the high longevity rate in the area are related to the region's weather, environment, and the living habits and physical activity of the population, as well as their diet.

Uyghur food is characterized by mutton, beef, camel, chicken, goose, carrots, tomatoes, onions, peppers, eggplant, celery, various dairy foods and fruits.

The primary dishes include lagman, boiled handmade noodles with beef, lamb or vegetables, soups made of lamb or chicken, shish kebabs of lamb or beef, and polos, rice platters also known as plov, with lamb or chicken).

Beverages include Chinese black tea.

Spices include cumin seeds, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, and the fat of the meat is used for flavoring.

Bread is the crispy, tasty, and nutty Central Asian-style baked flatbread known as naan, using sesame seeds, butter, milk, vegetable oil, salt, and sugar.

Kebabs, seasoned with chili powder, salt, black pepper, and zir, a kind of special herb which gives a unique flavor, are eaten with the skewer parallel 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.

Lagman are specially handmade noodles, 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 vegetables (bell peppers, hot peppers, cabbage, onion, tomatoes) in meat stock.

Uyghur-style breakfast is tea with home-baked bread, cheese, olives, honey, raisins and almonds. Uyghurs like to treat guests with tea, naan and fruit before the main dishes are ready.

Sangza are crispy and tasty fried wheat flour dough twists, a holiday specialty. Sumsa are lamb pies baked using a special brick oven. Youtazi is steamed multilayer bread. Guxnan are pan-grilled lamb pies. Pamirdin are baked pies with lamb, carrots, and onion inside. Xurpa is lamb soup. Other dishes include Tohax, a different type of baked bread, and Tunurkawab.

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