Beijing Halal Mutton Hotpot Technique

The Beijing halal hotpot technique, represented by Muslim houses such as Donglaishun (established 1903), developed northern mutton hotpot into a mature craft of careful sourcing and knife work — a signature skill of the city's halal cuisine.

The craft turns on the cut and the slicing: select parts of the sheep are trimmed of sinew and membrane and hand-sliced paper-thin; cooked in seconds in a clear broth over a copper pot and dipped in a sesame-based sauce, the mutton is tender, fresh and without any gamey edge.

The Beijing halal hotpot technique is inscribed as municipal-level intangible cultural heritage, a representative craft of the city's halal food culture and its winter dining customs.

At halal time-honored houses such as Donglaishun, diners can watch the hand-slicing at work and experience the craft first-hand around a copper hotpot.