The Best Food You Must Eat in Xian

 Among the local delicacies, Rou Jia Mo, Liang Pi and Ice Peak beverage are reputed as “set meal of Shaanxi”. Therefore, when you come to Xi 'an, you must try Paomo or Liangpi and then drink a bottle of Ice Peak soda, also the Biang Biang Noodles, typical food of Xi’an, is also worth trying, you can enjoy these famous Xi’an food in the Muslim Quarter, a snack street in Xian most popular among locals and tourists.

Yangrou Paomo (羊肉泡馍)

Paomo is a specialty of Shaanxi cuisine and is a typical food eaten in the city of Xi'an. It is a hot stew of chopped-up steamed leavened bread (known regionally as mo (馍) or mantou (馒头), cooked in lamb broth and served with lamb meat, sometimes substituted with beef. Shaanxi Paomo is made into two types: Yangrou Paomo and Hulutou Paomo. Tourists usually try the former one while the native Shaanxi people adore the latter one, however, most tourists are no fan of Hulutou Paomo due to its unique flavor. Yangrou Paomo Lamb paomo (羊肉泡馍) is made of lamb soup and a great amount of “mantou”. When making this dish, the cook breaks the bread into small pieces and adds them to the lamb soup, usually this step is done by the customers themselves, and it is also a special way of experiencing Xi’an life. The beef version is Niurou Paomo (牛肉泡馍). Paomo is often eaten with pickled garlic and chili sauce.

Rou Jia Mo (肉夹馍)

Rou Jia Mo (肉夹馍) is literally means “meat sandwiched in bread”, is a street food now widely consumed all over China and becomes more and more popular among foreign tourists. It is considered the Chinese equivalent to the Western hamburger and meat sandwiches. The handmade bread is crispy on the outside and soft inside, and then stuffed with tender fatty pork that has stewed for hours, giving it a tasty flavor, it is the first food you should think about trying when visiting Xian.

Liangpi (凉皮)

Liangpi is a famous food in Xi 'an. It is fresh, tender and smooth, with excellent taste, rich nutrition and can be made in various ways. There are three main categories, among them, Qin Zhen Liangpi is the most famous and has a history of more than 2,000 years. The prepared Liangpi is all red, spicy and fragrant, tasty and refreshing. Shaanxi Gan Mianpi (陕西岐山擀面皮) is another type of Liangpi, which tastes a bit firmer and looks darker in color compared to other Liangpi. There is also sesame sauce version called Majiang Liangpi (麻酱凉皮), which is halal flavor and tastes very good, and is most common in Muslim Quarter. 

Biang Biang Noodles (Biang Biang 面)

Biangbiang noodles, alternatively known as youpo chemian (油泼扯面) in Chinese, are a type of noodles popular in the cuisine of Shaanxi Province. The noodles, touted as one of the "eight strange wonders of Shaanxi" (陕西八大怪), are described as being like a belt, owing to their thickness and length, so it is also called “belt noodles (裤带面)”. The noodle is broad and hand-made and is often topped with lots of red hot peppers for the cold winter in Shaanxi.

Dumpling Dinner, Jiaozi Banquet (饺子宴)

Dumpling, called Jiaozi in Chinese, is one of the most representative types of Chinese food, which is well-known worldwide. The dumplings served for the Jiaozi Banquet can be steamed, boiled, fried, roasted or fried, prepared with well-selected materials, including a wide variety of ingredients and featuring different kinks of stuffing, aromatic taste and rich in nutrition. It’s not just a visual surprise but also an appetizing reward to eat a feast of dumplings.

Gourd-shaped Chicken （葫芦鸡)

Gourd-shaped Chicken (Hu Lu Ji) is a traditional Xi 'an dish, which once appeared in the TV series "White Deer Plain". Take a locally raised chicken as the main ingredient, prepare various kinds of seasonings, boil the cleaned chicken, steam it and finally fry it. After cooking, steaming and frying, the whole chicken looks like a gourd, with golden red color and crisp skin and rotten meat. Many restaurants also put it on gourd-shaped plates. In the shape of a calabash, this dish has a crisp skin, tender meat, and a strong aroma.