There is a variety of restaurants in the capital of Ningxia. Some of them specialise in local dishes. Lamb, Ningxia's famous traditional food, is very tender and cooked in different ways such as lamb braised in soy sauce, lamb steamed in clear soup and so on. These dishes are so tasty that they are served on festivals and at dinner parties. In addition to the local cuisine, Beijing, Islamic and many other kinds of foods are available.

Food in Ningxia is mainly featured by Muslim flavors. There are various local snacks mostly featuring the flavor of the Hui people. Hui ethnic people are strict with meat, although the staple food is almost the same as that of the Han. They only eat meat of ruminant or herbivorous animals butchered by designated people with a strict knowledge of Islamic doctrine, and the meat of the poultry like hens, ducks, and geese.

Meat of other animals and blood food is forbidden. The Hui like tea but do not smoke or drink alcohol. Delicately made and tasting good, wheaten food is a specialty of the Hui, with many varieties like youcha, gruel of sweetened, fried flour. Besides, snacks in Ningxia, such as instant boiled mutton, are also famous for their special flavor. Learning from chefs of other minority nationalities, Muslim cooks in Ningxia have created many new Islamic dishes like fried sheep-tails.

Recommended Foods:

Rinse-Mutton

Mutton in Ningxia is fresh and tender, and its smell is not strong. Slices of mutton can be boiled and serve together with various ingredients, Chinese cabbage, and vermicelli made from pea starch.

Grabbed Mutton
　
This dish has been popular for 1,000 years. The grabbed mutton, cooked with sheep ribs, is one of the traditional flavors of the Hui people in Ningxia, and is fresh, tender, and fragrant.

Steamed Dove-Fish　

The dove-fish is a special fish live in the torrents of the Yellow River water. For hundreds of years, it has been a tribute to the royal court. Shaped like a peony in blossom, it is one of the famous traditional dishes in Ningxia.

Mutton with Wolfberry Fruits

Tanyang, a kind of sheep raised in Ningxia, and wolfberry fruits, are native products of Ningxia. Fry the slices of Tanyang mutton and the soaked wolfberry fruits, then serve. This dish is pleasant to the taste, and nutritious. It is a common medicinal dish in local Ningxia.

Recommended restaurants:

Huangqu Bridge Lamb Restaurant
Add: Liqun Dongjie, Yinchuan
Telephone: 0951-6013818
Introduction: The lamb used here all comes from the Huangqu Qiao Area of Ningxia, an area known for producing the finest meat.

Lao Mao Shou Zhua
Add: 309 Xinhua Dongjie, Xingqing District, Yinchuan
Telephone: 0951-6191808
Introduction: This century-old restaurant specializes in braised mutton and lamb neck.

Huang He Lou Muslim Restaurant
Add: 55 Xinhua Dongjie, Yinchuan
Telephone: 0951-6083886
Introduction: Established in 1940s, Huang He Lou is time-honored restaurant in Ningxia. Built in typical Muslim style, they serve tang cu li yu (sweet and sour carp), tang cu li ji (fried sweet and sour pork), fu rong ji pu (braised sliced boneless chicken with egg and milk).

Xian He Lou Muslim Dining Hall
Add: 204 Xinhua Dongjie, Yinchuan
Telephone: 0951-6091844, 6017542
Introduction: It is the largest indoor garden restaurant in Northwest China, serving special Muslim dishes as well as Sichuan and Cantonese cuisine, specializing in seafood and local snacks.
Recommended: dumplings stuffed with mutton

De Long Lou Muslim Restaurant
Add: De Long Lou Muslim Restaurant
Telephone: 0951-6022073
Introduction: It is a large restaurant that serves shuang yang rou (mutton slices rinsed in chafing dish), de long ba ji (de long grilled chicken), tie guo dan (egg cooked in iron pan) and Beijing, Shandong and Sichuan cuisine.

Xi Mai You Mian Cun
Add: 323 Jianfa Jiashijie, Yinchuan
Telephone: 0951-6191800
Introduction: This restaurant specializes in the mainly Muslim Northwestern Chinese cuisine.