Bean noodle dough (Doumian Héle): Hard dough made with bean flour and wormwood seeds is first "relaxed" to soften it, then kneaded until smooth. It is divided into appropriate lengths, placed into the press of a noodle extruder, and forced into a boiling soup pot, coming out in vermicelli-like strands. Once cooked, they are fished out and topped with a savory broth ("shaozi") or served with sauces such as soy sauce and vinegar. This dish is commonly prepared for festive occasions...
Block Lei: A general term for a type of coarse food made from pure oat flour or oat flour mixed with crushed yam, stirred into small, chunky pieces. It is called "Block Lei" because it can be casually kneaded or stirred by hand or chopsticks, forming a blocky, piled-up dish. "Block...
Glass dumplings, also known as crystal dumplings, are a distinctive local delicacy often served during festivals or when entertaining guests. The ingredients include specialty yam (potato), potato starch flour, and dumpling filling. The resulting dumpling wrappers are as delicate and translucent as glass or crystal, offering an exceptionally delightful texture—truly a visually appealing and tasty regional specialty. The making method…
Mix half oat flour with half yam flour to form a stiff, elastic dough. Using your thumb, roll a small lump of dough ("dough ball") in the palm of your hand into a small conch-shaped shell, called a "ge tuo'er" (个砣儿). Boil it in a soup pot, then remove and season before eating. It’s white, smooth, and traditionally made by rural families as a...
Steamed Oats Noodles First, the oats are processed and ground into oats flour, which must go through the "three cooked" steps: the first cooking when harvested in the field, the second cooking when pan-fried until yellow before milling, and the third cooking when stirred with boiling water before kneading. The resulting oats flour is yellowish, aromatic, and very elastic. The kneaded...
Left Yun County has a large area dedicated to potato cultivation, accounting for about one-third of the county’s total grain field acreage. The varieties are high-quality, producing potatoes with excellent traits. A virus-free potato base has now been established, centered around the county’s seed farm. Potatoes, also known as “tudou” or “shanyao,” contain approximately 12%–15% starch. They are also rich in protein (about 8%)…
Flaxseed is widely grown in the northwestern part of Datong. Nowadays, the planting areas in Xinrong District and Zuoyun County have reached 40,000 mu and 38,000 mu respectively. The flaxseed from Zuoyun County is renowned across the province for its high yield, superior quality, and high oil extraction rate. Flaxseed refers to the variety of flax grown primarily for its oil. The seeds are flat and oval-shaped, dark brown in color with a glossy appearance, and are used for oil production. Fl...
Bailinggu is a rare edible mushroom with high both culinary and medicinal value. Its cap is pure white in color, with tender flesh and a delicious taste. It is rich in 14.7% protein, 4.31% fat, 15.4% crude fiber, and contains a total of 10.6% amino acids, as well as various health-beneficial minerals, especially fungal polysaccharides…
The Datong region boasts abundant coal resources, extensive distribution, a long mining history, and international renown, earning it the title "Coal Capital of China." According to expert assessments, several million years ago, this area was once a vast expanse of emerald-green lakes, referred to by scientists as the "Datong Lake." At that time, the shores of Datong Lake enjoyed a hot climate, lush forests, and dense fern thickets…
Bean Noodle Varieties The county is particularly well known for its high-quality flat beans. A noodle made from two-thirds washed and steamed flat beans and one-third oat flour, ground together, is called oat and bean noodles. This is a local specialty that is famous far and wide. There are four main ways to eat it:
Northern Road Flaxseed Oil: Flax is one of the world’s oldest cultivated crops, with a history of five to six thousand years. According to relevant records, it originated in the ethnic minority regions of northern China. Botanical experts have discovered wild flax in the Yinshan Mountain area of Inner Mongolia. Flax is also called “huma,” a name derived from ethnic minorities. …
"Congee": Various types of "congee" can be made using pure millet or a mixture of millet with a certain amount of yam chunks, pumpkin chunks, yellow carrots, and various beans (such as mung beans and lentils). The commonly referred to "congee" generally means millet congee...
、"Youren Dumplings": Made with a dough of equal parts millet and yellow millet, stuffed with "Maguye" (a mixture of half hemp seed flour and half oat tea flour, seasoned with salt, pepper, and other spices), these dumplings are steamed and served. They have a uniquely soft, chewy texture and rich, oily aroma. Using this "two-flour mix," they are also shaped into "solid flatbreads," steamed, and served with "brine," vinegar, chili peppers, etc., known as "Two-Flour Flatbreads," combining the characteristics of both cake and oat noodles.
"Three-Mixed Noodle Rolls"; made with a fermented dough consisting of equal parts oat flour, buckwheat flour, and wheat flour, mixed with an appropriate amount of alkali, steamed, then cut into squares with string. The rolls are soft and delicious. …
, "Cake": A yellow cake steamed from millet flour, simply called "cake." In our county, residents who eat "plain cake" often prefer "Glutinous Bean Flour Cake." It is made by layering black beans or yellow...
Stirred Soup and Porridge: Both stirred soup and porridge are thin gruels made only with flour and no rice. The dish made by stirring pieces of dough into boiling water is called "stirred soup." The best kind of "stirred soup" is "white flour and egg stirred soup."…
Thin porridge: As referred to by local residents, thin porridge (or congee) can be made from millet and falls into three major categories, comprising eleven types in total. The first category is "yellow thin porridge," which is the everyday thin porridge made by boiling washed millet in clear water. This is the most common and palatable basic type of thin porridge. It has a fragrant aroma, …
Buckwheat Noodle Boiled Cake: Knead the prepared buckwheat dough into small, round flatbreads about one-third of an inch thick, boil them in a soup pot until cooked, then remove and let cool. Slice them into thin pieces, stir-fry in oil, and season with salt, pepper, scallions, garlic, vinegar, and other seasonings. Serve with pickled vegetables for a refreshing and appetizing dish. In the past, families that ate more refined meals would often make these cakes if there were leftovers of buckwheat noodles from the noon meal…
Buckwheat "Da Mo Mo": Mix buckwheat flour with water to form a semi-thick batter, then add salt, Sichuan peppercorns, chopped scallions, and other seasonings, stirring until well combined. Scoop the batter with a spoon and swirl it into a hot, oiled pan over the fire. Next, rotate the pan to allow the batter to spread into a relatively even round pancake. Bake it briefly over gentle heat until the top sets and changes color, while the bottom turns golden brown. Serve it hot, dipped in vinegar, chili peppers, pickled vegetables, etc. It is light, fluffy, fragrant, soft, and extremely delicious. Its appearance is quite similar to that of savory pancakes sold elsewhere.
"Bobbing Noodles": Soft noodle strands are flicked with bamboo chopsticks into small fish-like strips, which are then directly dropped into a pot. Once cooked, they are scooped out and seasoned. This dish is commonly eaten when there are few people, time is limited, or after having "Mian Mian" (a type of noodles), where the residue from the "Mian Mian" mold is scraped off, mixed with soft noodle strands, and served with...