Air-Dried Yak Jerky

Yak jerky is made from plateau yak beef, cut into pieces, cured, then air-dried or smoked into dark-red strips of tight fibre, intensely chewy and rich in meaty fragrance, one of the most emblematic local delicacies and gifts of Shangri-La.

The yak is a creature unique to the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, hardy against the cold and sure-footed under load, and Tibetan people have long lived on its meat and milk. The highland's cold, dry air is a natural cure for preserving flesh, and air-dried yak became the traditional way to keep meat through the year and the travelling ration of the mule caravans and migrating herders.

It can be torn and eaten straight as a snack, or sliced to accompany barley wine and butter tea; local speciality shops sell it in vacuum packets easy to carry, a highland gift to bring home to family and friends.

The tight fibre and deep savour of yak beef, and the chew and keeping quality that the highland air-drying gives it, are what set yak jerky apart from ordinary beef jerky.