The restaurant plans to introduce Northwest cuisine in the second half of the year, mainly making mutton soup pot, so I took Lao Wu on a special trip to the Northwest some time ago. I have always been strict with ingredients. Since I want to make northwest mutton, I naturally have to make it to the extreme.

Lao Wu didn’t like eating mutton at first, and he was very disgusted with it. After going to the northwest, he completely changed his mind. When driving along National Highway 312 from Shaanxi into Gansu, the signboard Dongxiang holds will accompany you all the way west.

The further you go, the denser it gets. If you find that there are cars parked in front of a restaurant, there is a lot of people inside and outside the door, and the waiters wearing white hats are rushing back and forth with plates full of mutton. Congratulations then. Must have found the best local mutton restaurant.

Lao Wu wanted to find a place to park, so I stood on the side of the road waiting for him. The small shop, which was only a dozen square meters, was full of people. There were many others waiting nearby like me. There was a stove in the middle of the hall, and hot water was sizzling in the two large teapots placed on it. This kind of store layout is mostly common in small restaurants in northwest rural areas.

Dongxiang’s hand-caught mutton is fat and tender, with less fiber and fine meat, and no smell at all. At first, Lao Wu waved his hands and refused to eat, but after taking the first bite, he never put down his chopsticks. When you talk to him, he doesn't respond very much. He just nods and says it's delicious.

Of course, Dongxiang’s hands are famous for their good quality. The sheep are all killed early in the morning and cooked in plain water. Put the most basic seasonings in the soup, ginger slices to remove the fishy smell, peppercorns and salt to taste. The less seasoning, the more original flavor it retains.

After cooking, bring it to the table steaming hot, with salt and pepper and garlic paste sprinkled with oil next to it. There are also those that do not add minced garlic and eat them with garlic cloves. There is a local proverb, "If you eat meat without garlic, the nutrition will be reduced by half." This shows their love for garlic cloves when eating hand-caught mutton.

Grab the soft cooked rib meat, tear it off, dip it in salt and pepper, then add freshly peeled garlic cloves, one bite of meat, one bite of garlic, the meat is tender and soft, fragrant and delicious, just suck it on. After eating it, it is no exaggeration to call it the best meat.

After eating the mutton, my heart and stomach are feeling warm. To make "Dongxiang hand-caught" meat good, the quality of the sheep is the key. The Dongxiang Jie sheep used in Dongxiang hand-caught mutton are produced in Dongxiang Autonomous County, Linxia City, Gansu Province, where there are deep mountains and deep ravines, drought and little rain, and low moisture content of pasture. The sheep followed the path all the way up in search of pasture. From a distance, they looked like jade beads hanging in the sky.

The special geographical environment makes Dongxiang mutton fat and nutritious. Hospitable Dongxiang people, no matter how poor or simple their life is, during festivals or when guests come to visit, the most solemn hospitality ceremony is to slaughter a sheep.

I heard from other customers that even though this store is small, it can sell dozens of sheep every day. Lao Wu and I were very surprised after hearing this. Sure enough, in the catering industry, we can't be careless. Every step of the ingredients, taste, and craftsmanship must be refined and prudent. I understand this very well.

Since I decided to introduce Northwest sheep to the restaurant to make soup pots, I have eaten at Northwest restaurants in Chongqing. Mutton is a must-order every time. I have a clear idea of ??which restaurant tastes better, which one is inferior, which one has been improved, and which one has the most original flavor. Then take Lao Wu and walk along the northwest route to visit all the lamb restaurants with good reputations.

Close the door, leave, and start at the next stop.

Without a few trips to the Northwest, how can you truly appreciate the authentic flavor of the Northwest?