Nang (Uyghur Flatbread)

Nang, from the Uyghur word nan, is a leavened flatbread: dough rolled into rounds that are thin in the middle and thick at the rim, stamped with patterns and slapped against the heated wall of a clay tandoor to bake, crisp outside and chewy within, rich with the scent of wheat, the staple Uyghurs eat at every meal.

The word nang comes from Persian, and the bread itself originated in Persia and Central Asia, reaching Xinjiang along the Silk Road over two thousand years ago; old Chinese records called it the "foreign cake" or "oven cake," a living witness to the food exchanges of the Silk Road.

Best torn and eaten hot from the tandoor, it is also dipped in milk tea, served alongside kebabs, or used to wrap baked samsa; its dry, hard texture keeps well and travels easily, making it the traditional trail food of herdsmen and travellers.

The scorch marks from the tandoor wall, the stamped patterns at its centre and the dry fragrance that keeps for days are what mark nang out from other flatbreads.