Dining Out

Goat soup for the soul

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-10 11:06

Goat soup is a Beijing favorite, especially now the weather is getting chilly. Chinese believe goat replenishes the yang factor in the body. Now, a restaurant chain from Sichuan, Jianyang Goat Soup (四川简阳羊肉汤) is getting in on the action.

Jianyang of Sichuan is famous for its goat soup and many Chengdu residents take a trip to the city in order to check out the specialty.

The restaurant uses Jianyang goat, fed on mountain grass and spring water, and local spices, while boiling the soup for more than 10 hours. It looks milky white, tastes smooth, and smells fragrant. The base soup costs 15 yuan. Adding goat meat, or goat giblets, will cost 50 yuan for 500 grams.

A great match with the soup is nang bread (馕), which softens up when soaked in the soup. Afterward, one can use the goat soup for hot pot, adding a variety of ingredients such as beef, lamb, mushroom and vegetables. Ordinary mushrooms costs from 5-10 yuan per helping. More expensive choices are bamboo mushroom at 26 yuan a plate, and yangdu (lamb stomach, named after its shape羊肚菌 ), at 60 yuan a plate.

The restaurant also provides a sesame sauce, or fresh green pepper sauce to go with the hot pot.

A good dish to try is the spicy quick-fried goat stomach (火爆羊肚), which might sound strange but is surprisingly tasty.

Dcor is traditional small Chinese eatery style, while hygiene and service is average. The menu is only in Chinese. Average spending is 30 yuan per person.

Baiziwan branch: 16 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang district. 6771-0338. 朝阳区百子湾路16号(后现代城对面)

Jintai Lu branch100 m west of bus No 9, Jintai Lu, Chaoyang district. 8596-0990. 朝阳区金台路9路公车总站往西100米