Lop Nur Small Oil Naan

Lop Nur Small Oil Naan

　　Lop Nur Small Oil Naan

　　　　Naan is one of the staple breads beloved by the various ethnic groups in Xinjiang, with a history of over two thousand years. There are many varieties of naan, roughly fifty or more. Common types include meat naan, oil naan, pit naan, sesame naan, flat naan, Hilman naan, and so on. It is said that the Chinese character “馕” (naan) originates from the Persian language and was widely used in the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey, and Central Asian countries. The Uyghur people originally called naan “艾买克” (aimaike), and only after the introduction of Islam to Xinjiang did they start calling it “naan.” Lop Nur Small Oil Naan

　　The general method for making naan is quite similar to that of Han Chinese baked flatbread. A small amount of salt water and fermented dough are added to flour (or refined flour), mixed evenly, kneaded thoroughly, and left to rise slightly before baking in a naan oven (tunur). The naan oven is round and made of fired clay. Adding sheep fat results in oil naan; mixing diced lamb, cumin powder, pepper, and chopped onions as fillings produces meat naan. Mixing sesame with grape juice and baking it yields sesame naan, and so on. The names of naan vary accordingly due to differences in dough preparation, added ingredients, shape, and baking methods. Legend has it that when the Tang Dynasty monk Xuanzang traveled through the desert and Gobi on his journey to obtain Buddhist scriptures, he carried naan with him—naan that helped him complete his arduous journey. Through this beautiful legend, people of all ethnicities have come to regard naan as an essential daily food.