The Naxi people, like most people in every moderately developed country today, enjoy "three square meals" per day. The main evening dish consists of rice, corn, potatoes and pork – and of course Baba, a kind of tasty and fragrant cake, is served. For breakfast, the Naxi usually have steamed bread and boiled cake.

Lunch generally consists of two courses of fried dishes, salted vegetables and soup. Naxi people tend to be excellent cooks. Among the foreign kitchen utensils adopted by the Naxi people, one of the special favorites is the chafing dish, which was introduced to the Naxi via the Hui ethnic minority.

The Naxi typically prepare their dishes using both local ingredients and "outside" specialty ingredients. Popular fancier dishes include steamed duck with Chinese caterpillar fungus, chicken with the bulb of fritillary, a native plant whose stems bear a resemblance to the white lily, and chicken with the tuber of elevated gastrodia, a type of orchid.

Whether living on the flatlands or in mountainous districts, the Naxi people have ample access to a variety of vegetables, including potatoes, turnips and beans, throughout the seasons. Of all the renowned traditional Naxi dishes, mushrooms with meat stuffing, usually served in connection with a sacrificial ceremony, is the most popular. The Naxi are also fond of buttered tea in the mornings and a green tea after other meals. In general, spicy and tangy foods, as well as sweet foods, are Naxi favorites.

Snacks

 
Baba – any way you care to make it – is the local Naxi snack. Baba is a fragrant, flour cake that will make your mouth water. Here are the main ways Baba is served:

Stewed Baba

The flour cakes are simmered in the proper amount of water in a big covered pot over a slow fire until they appear golden and begin to release their irresistible fragrance.

Roasted Baba

Place the half-cooked (in water) cake on a smooth, heated cobblestone at the edge of a fire and let it roast there until it becomes puffy and soft. It is delicious like this with thick chilli sauce.

Pot-Lid Baba

Place a wedge of cooked (in water) cake on the lid of a large pot while melons – or potatoes – are being cooked. When the melons, or potatoes, are ready, so is the Baba! The Baba reheated this way is very soft.