When traveling, in addition to feasting your eyes, you also need to feed your stomach.

But the fullness of the stomach is not just a casual meal.

When traveling to a place, in addition to exploring history in the scenery, you must also look for history in the food. The ubiquity of history just proves the development and progress of civilization.

Xinjiang has a vast land and rich resources, with fascinating natural scenery, mysterious and ancient history, unique humanities and customs, and mouth-watering delicacies and snacks.

Speaking of Xinjiang cuisine, the most familiar ones are the various flavors made from mutton, among which kebabs and roasted whole lamb are particularly tempting.

But in the world of mutton, Xinjiang people use mutton in more than just these ways - if it is a pity not to eat mutton in Xinjiang, then not eating grilled buns made of mutton is another way to appreciate Xinjiang mutton.

kind of regret.

Grilled buns can be eaten in all regions of Xinjiang, but the most popular and authentic ones are found in Hotan.

When I went to Hotan, facing the baked bun shops in the streets and alleys, the most unmissable one was the "Yulong Kashgar Famous Aike De Wood Baked Buns" shop.

This is an old signature store in Hotan with a history of 31 years.

A bowl of milk tea and two toasted buns, this is Hotan people’s favorite breakfast.

The finely diced lamb leg meat must be paired with skin sprouts (onions), which are the soul of the baked buns. Only when dipped in cumin powder and chili pepper will you understand what is hidden in the golden and crispy buns.

One that tastes delicious.

But it’s not just breakfast these days.

Lunch is also included.

As long as the "Aikede Wood-Grilled" steamed bun shop doesn't close, there will be no shortage of diners.

Whether tourists or locals, everyone gathered at a table, drank milk tea and baked buns, and communicated with each other amidst the steaming aroma.

There is a constant flow of diners here all year round.

Every day at lunch time, when the Xinyi Keng baked buns are cooked, a loud shout of "the baked buns are done" will be heard from the back hall. This shout is like a rallying call, and a large number of guests flock to the table.

The first one said "grab", one said "I want five", the other shouted "I want 10".

If anyone is a step slow, he will have to wait for a while.

As Hotan's tourism continues to develop, the reputation of this baked bun restaurant has also grown. Almost all tourists who come to Hotan eat here.

In order to satisfy tourists' desire for this flavor, it is reported that the "Aikede Wood Baked" bun shop sells 3,000 to 5,000 baked buns every day.

Such a large quantity requires high-intensity work and a large amount of labor to ensure supply.

When I walked through the crowd and came to the back kitchen, I couldn't help but be surprised. There were at least thirty or forty chefs working here at the same time.

Seeing their busy and orderly work attitude made the idiom "in full swing" come into my mind.

Baked buns with a long history must follow tradition in order to retain their delicious taste. Therefore, baking naan pits is a treasure that cannot be replaced by modern equipment, and it is smaller than ordinary naan pits.

It must be built with alkaline soil. The alkaline soil will become harder as it burns, ensuring that the pit will not collapse after long-term use.

Before people stick the finished buns to the wall of the pit, they must first sprinkle salt water into the pit, and the action of spreading salt water is very particular.

In order for me, a foreign tourist, to understand clearly, a young chef gave me a demonstration and told me: "Salt water has a rapid cooling effect, allowing the arms to quickly move in and out of the hot pot at 300 degrees Celsius." And this

The purpose of entering and exiting is to send the buns into the pit and stick them to the wall of the pit.

At the same time, in order to let me feel the temperature in the pit, the chef handed me a bun and asked me to put it into the kang myself.

At that moment, my heart was full of gratitude and nervousness.

When I put my hand into the pit, I realized that even though the salt water had a cooling effect, it was still very hot.

But after the pit walls are covered with buns, people will dust a lot of salt water into the pit again.

Under the heat, the salt water turns into steam, which is used to ensure that the buns will not be too stiff after baking. Then a thick blanket is taken out to cover the mouth of the pit.

All the work seems to be over, and the next step is to wait for the buns to be cooked.

When the golden and crispy baked buns come out of the naan pit, the tempting aroma is irresistible.

The aroma and heat fresh out of the pit are the most tempting, and I immediately feel that selling a baked bun for 5 yuan is really a good idea.

In order to cater to the tastes of modern people, in addition to the most traditional beef and mutton, Aike Demu's baked buns also have improved tomato and green pepper flavors, which are fragrant and not greasy, and are very popular among foreign tourists.

But for more tourists, the traditional taste cannot be missed in the end.

Due to the special environment and location of Xinjiang, the mutton here is very delicious.

Throughout thousands of years of history, Xinjiang people not only love to eat sheep, but also know how to eat sheep.