Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City (Part 5 of 6)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: East City:. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Muslim History, Northern Beijing, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source. This is part 5 of 6.
Part 5 of 6
When we arrived, the shop owner pointed to the young waiter as soon as we walked in and said, "Two people, seat them over there." The waiter then asked how much we wanted to eat and immediately brought over the meat and seasonings. Following the Beijing custom, we put our right foot on the ground and rested our left foot on the bench, then used long bamboo chopsticks to dip the meat slices in seasoning and place them on the grill. The grill was heated by a type of pine wood that produced very little smoke and had a faint, pleasant scent. The grill was very hot, and the meat slices sizzled the moment they touched it. After flipping them a few times, they were ready to eat. We had a sip of white liquor (baijiu) with each bite of meat, which felt a bit like being in a Mongolian yurt beyond the Great Wall. Toward the end of the meal, we stopped drinking and were served sesame flatbread (shaobing). We ate the flatbread with the grilled meat and finished with a bowl of porridge, which left us completely full. After putting down our bowls and chopsticks, we heard the shop owner calculating the bill: so much for this and that, with each unit of ten copper coins called a diao, adding it all up to the final total. Even while calculating the bill, he kept his knife moving and continued to slice. I was very satisfied with this meal and will definitely want to come back again. Every visit is rewarding. Eating well is one thing, but it is even more interesting to watch the owner’s style. With his big belly exposed, he stays busy but never flustered, truly living up to the description of being open and at ease.
Fuxuan Suohua by Zhang Zhongxing
Kaorou Wan as described by Jin Shoushen.
The owner of Kaorou Wan, Old Wan the Fifth, originally ran a stall selling flatbreads (bing). Back in the days when it was popular to sell grilled meat (zhengpao rou) from small carts, the Wan family was already selling grilled meat on a round iron plate (zhizi kaorou). They set up their stall at the west entrance of An'er Hutong. As time passed and business grew, they set up a shed to sell the meat and expanded from one iron grill plate to two. Every day, carriages and horses filled the entrance, yet the shop remained just a shed. Kaorou Wan uses only high-quality young beef (kaorou wan specializes in beef), which makes the meat tender and delicious. Wan Laowu is very skilled. He hand-cuts about 100 jin of beef every day. He handles all the sales himself, cutting meat and calculating the bill at the same time. He is so focused that he never makes a mistake, even with the price of a single cucumber.
Life in Old Beijing by Jin Shoushen, Kaorou Wan.
Kaorou Wan uses fuel like pine cones and pine branches that give off a fragrant scent while grilling. The fire at Kaorou Wan burns bright, and you can smell the pine aroma from far away.
Inside Kaorou Wan, the tables have special iron grills (zhizi) where diners grill the meat as they eat. First, marinate the meat slices in a sauce made of ginger juice, soy sauce, shrimp sauce (luxiayou), tomato, and egg white. Then, grease the grill with sheep tail fat and heat it up. When you are ready to eat, spread the sliced green onions on the hot grill and start cooking the meat. When the meat is almost cooked, sprinkle on some chopped cilantro and flip the slices. The beef tastes best when it turns purple, and the lamb tastes best when it turns pinkish-white. It is tender, smooth, juicy, and lean without being dry.
Time-Honored Brand: Wang Hong, Kaorou Wan.
Kaorou Wan is famous and busy because they pick high-quality meat, slice it thinly, use a full range of seasonings, and make it taste delicious. Kaorou Wan sends people to the beef and mutton market in Madian outside Deshengmen to buy fat sheep from north of the pass. The way Kaorou Wan slices meat is a family skill. They require every slice to be three inches long, one inch wide, and as thin as paper. This way, the meat on the grill (zhizi) cooks through, making it easy for customers to chew and swallow. You cannot have barbecue without green onions. They are cut into half-inch diagonal pieces for customers to use while grilling. Each customer gets a blue-rimmed porcelain bowl in front of them, filled with seasonings like dark soy sauce, sesame oil, cooking wine, sugar, chopped green onions, minced ginger, minced garlic, and salt. Back then, Kaorouwan let customers grill their own meat. Each person held a pair of wooden chopsticks over a foot long, stood with one foot on a bench and the other on the ground, and ate while they grilled.
Beijing's Commercial Streets and Time-Honored Brands by Wang Yongbin, Kaorouwan in 1930.
On the east side of the street inside Xuanwumen, near Rongxian Hutong, there used to be a small shop (really just a food stall) that only sold grilled beef. This was the famous Kaorouwan. This Kaorouwan has many unique features. Although the restaurant is small, it has been family-run for six generations. When I was around twenty years old, back in about 1930, the person running the place was a man over forty. Following the custom of Hui Muslims, Beijingers respectfully called him Wanba, which means Master Wan. He had a large head, thick eyebrows, and bright, piercing eyes. He was short and sturdy, moved quickly, and had a sharp mind with great organizational skills. He was very strict about choosing meat and only used the chuck (shangnao). His meat-slicing technique was fast and skillful. He cut large, thin slices that were free of gristle and veins, making the meat incredibly tender and rich. The beef had a milky aroma and tasted delicious when grilled, which is why Kaorou Wan has kept its fame for so long.
Kaorou Wan was just a small shop with two gray sheds set up on the sidewalk by the road. It was divided into an inner and outer room. The inner room held two grilling plates (zhizi). Because so many people came to eat, they used extra-large ones, with a diameter of up to three feet, set over a fire basin with an iron ring. Below were large round tables, and each table could fit ten people standing around it. People eating the grilled meat had no seats. They would stand with one foot on a long bench. All the seasonings, meat, bowls, flatbreads (bing), and wine were placed on the edge of the round table. Diners held wooden chopsticks two feet long—as thick as rattan, otherwise you could not reach the grill through the crowd—and waved their arms to eat heartily. You can imagine how wild and rugged the scene was. Beef is sold by the bowl, with each full bowl weighing ten taels (liang) by the old scale, and half-bowls are also available. For an average adult, ten taels is enough, and those with a bigger appetite can just add half a bowl more. Condiments are sold individually, such as a small dish of green onions or soy sauce, and you can add or remove items like sesame flatbread (shaobing) as you like. You had to bring your own liquor at first, but later they started selling liquor too, at two taels per bowl. Back then, a full meal for one person cost five or six jiao, which was a big expense. An ordinary person could eat a simple meal at a small restaurant without liquor for less than two jiao, so spending five or six jiao on a meal was considered extravagant for most residents.
Every late autumn, the smell of roasted meat would drift through Xuanwumen Street, which was quite tempting. The customers were mostly working-class people and ordinary citizens; the wealthy and powerful never came here. Later, Kaorou Wan became famous. Wealthy and powerful families heard about it, came to taste the delicious roast beef, and spread the word. Soon, prominent figures arrived in cars with their servants, and even noblewomen dripping in jewelry came to visit. These people did not mind losing their status, squeezing in between sweaty, hungry men to eat roast meat with long wooden chopsticks. Master Wan was not moved by this. He did not consider setting up a private room, nor did he stand up to flatter or entertain them. He kept doing things his own way and treated everyone the same. This style was a valuable quality among small Beijing merchants at the time.
Kaorou Wan not only had excellent meat, but Master Wan also had a unique, simple, and meticulous style, skilled and refined techniques, a sharp mind, and an organized memory. These things left a deep impression in my observations and memories. Since he only had a small business with two gray sheds, he did not have many staff. Besides himself, I remember there were only two young assistants. They just ran back and forth, moved supplies, and washed the bowls and chopsticks. Besides keeping the accounts, greeting guests, and looking after their coats, his main job was standing at the counter to slice meat. He was so skilled at slicing meat that even when twenty people ate at once, he never ran out. When the place was packed and people were bumping into each other looking for seats, he kept his eyes and ears open. He muttered calculations, sliced meat without stopping, greeted guests, and made sure people were served in the order they arrived. This person arrived first, please sit over there. Please wait a moment, you arrived just after this person. While doing all this, he also collected money and nodded goodbye to guests. At the same time, he noticed if someone took the wrong umbrella or where someone else had hung their hat and coat. His calm and organized way of working was truly amazing.
Memories of Snacks: Jin Yunzhen
3. Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop inside Xuanwumen
To the east of Liaoyuan Department Store, there used to be a Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop. It was the first shop on the west side of the north entrance of Xuannei Street before it was torn down for road expansion. The door is on the north side. Through the glass window on the south side, you can see the owner selling goods with high-quality beef and mutton behind him. This Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop had unique features, the first being its name. Shops selling halal beef and mutton are called beef and mutton shops or mutton shops, never just meat shops. The second feature is how they sell the meat. All the beef and mutton for sale is hung up on hooks. The third feature is how customers ask for meat. When a customer comes to buy meat, the shopkeeper asks how they plan to cook it—stewed, braised, or flash-fried—and then selects the right cut for them. Fourth, the knife technique. When using the knife, the shopkeeper grips the handle with their thumb, middle, ring, and little fingers, while resting their index finger on the spine of the blade. Fifth, the packaging. In summer and autumn, they wrap the meat in fresh lotus leaves, and in winter and spring, they use dried lotus leaves before handing it to the customer to carry away.
This Hui Muslim beef and lamb shop sells homemade roasted lamb (shao yangrou) every day after 4:00 p.m., and you can smell the delicious aroma all around the neighborhood. You can spend two or three jiao to buy some roasted lamb and ask the shopkeeper to let you take a bottle of old broth (laotang) on credit, then go home and pour the stewed meat broth over noodles for a truly great dinner.
Memories of the shops at the Xidan Archway from 'Past Stories of Xicheng, Beijing 7'. Ma Enci
4. Youyishun Restaurant at the Xidan intersection inside Xuanwumen
Fried dough cakes (youbing) from Youyishun Snack Bar
At that time (Wang Dongsi: 1970s), Youyishun Snack Bar occupied four and a half storefronts. The dining area was spacious with over 20 square tables, seating more than 120 people at once. However, more breakfast customers stood to eat than sat down. Just the breakfast production and service staff numbered over 20 people. For breakfast, they fried four bags of flour (200 jin) into dough cakes. Four people working two frying pans had to make about 2,000 dough cakes. Because they opened four windows for sales, four long lines formed as soon as they opened the doors. With such high sales, they could not keep up if they fried the dough cakes to order. They had to fry 500 of them before opening. If they placed them in enamel trays, the poor airflow would make them soft. They used specially made rectangular wire racks and had to fry them a bit crispier to ensure they did not go limp or collapse. Deep-frying until crispy uses more oil, which naturally lowers the profit margin, but we choose lower profits to ensure quality. Business hours are from 6:00 to 13:00, with daily sales around 1,000 yuan, and 400 to 500 yuan of that is sold in just the first two hours of breakfast. The shop assistant has to collect food stamps and cash while handing goods to customers, a job that requires a quick mind and fast hands and feet. The shop assistants are all young women around 20 years old, and after two hours of busy work, they take turns resting for a moment, which they call catching their breath.
Beijing Cultural and Historical Data: Youyishun and Beijing Snacks. Ling Enyue (Wang Dongsi: The author was an employee at Youyishun in the 1970s).
5. Dong Siba's spiced lamb head (jiangyangtou) inside Deshengmen
For red-style sheep head (hongzuo yangtou), besides the roasted sheep head sold at mutton shops in summer, there is also soy-sauce sheep head (jiang yangtou). Braised lamb head (jiang yangtou) also comes from outside Deshengmen. The inventor was Dong Siba. His braised lamb head has a deep flavor, and the 'walnut meat' part is especially interesting. Dong set up his stall at the entrance of Yixing Wine Vat (now changed to Beiyixing) north of Guozishi inside Deshengmen. Over time, he gained many customers, and some even wanted to sell his goods wholesale. It gradually became a workshop for braised lamb head, where he not only sold it himself but also produced it in large quantities for others.
The Life of Old Beijingers by Jin Shushen
6. Xue Siba's steamed lamb (zhengyangrou) outside Deshengmen
Regarding steamed lamb (zheng yangrou), the 'Dumen Jilue' only says, 'Steamed lamb, meat stall on the east side of Madian Road outside Deshengmen.' This is correct, but it is not very detailed. The inventor of steamed lamb was Xue Sanba from the Daoguang era. He was a Hui Muslim who lived in Madian outside Deshengmen. It is still a secret recipe of the Xue family, located on the west side of Guanxiang Road in Deshengmen. There are imitations, but the taste is nowhere near as good as what the Xue family makes. To make steamed lamb, select the finest lamb and cut it into large squares. Coat the raw meat thoroughly with yellow bean paste (huangjiang), add Sichuan peppercorns and five-spice powder, and let it marinate in a jar for three days. Take it out and steam it until cooked. The flavor goes deep, and it melts in your mouth like cheese. The difference between the real and the fake is that the real one has bright, clear colors and no bits of lamb spilling out. The second point is that the saltiness is even because it is braised in sauce before being steamed; it is not too salty, yet it can stay fresh for a long time without spoiling. The third point is that it melts in your mouth and does not have the problem of having tough, fatty bits.
The Life of Old Beijingers by Jin Shushen
7. Yang's lamb stall (yangrouchuangzi) on Guanxiang Street at Deshengmen
The Yang Family Lamb Shop (Yangji Yangrou Chuangzi) does not have a large storefront. The two-room front is the business area, while the small courtyard and three rooms in the back are used for raising sheep, slaughtering sheep, and housing the shop staff. The storefront of the Yang Family Lamb Shop consists of two rooms. One room is where they sell the lamb, featuring a plain, unpainted wooden cutting board (baicha) about 7 feet long and 4 feet wide, placed right under the window. They open the window to start business. Customers cannot enter the shop and must stand outside the cutting board to buy meat. Because the butcher's block for cutting meat was long and wide, like a bed, people called lamb shops lamb beds (yangrou chuangzi). In the past, lamb shops in Beijing were all set up this way. Another part of the shop had a wooden door, and outside the window next to it sat an oil table with bamboo steamers holding steaming hot white flour lamb and cabbage buns (baizi).
This Yang's Lamb Bed also sold white flour lamb buns. They bought their sheep at the Madian Sheep Market on the north side of the Deshengmen gate. They went to the market every four or five days, bringing back about ten fat, big-tailed white sheep each time to keep in the backyard pen for a few days before slaughtering them. With a steady rotation of sheep in the pen, they never ran out of stock and always had fresh, tender meat from live sheep to slaughter.
On a normal day, they sold two sheep, but when autumn arrived, they were busiest and could sell three or four sheep a day. The white flour lamb and cabbage buns at Yang's Lamb Bed had thin skins, big fillings, plenty of meat, and a great taste. They were famous for a time, and with so many people buying them, they were sold out every day. Local residents love buying steamed buns (baozi) from Yang's Lamb Stall (Yangji Yangrou Chuangzi). Cart drivers, street vendors, and travelers passing through Deshengmen Gate also come here to buy a few to eat.
Beijing's Suburban Towns and Old Brands by Wang Yongbin.
8. The sheep market (yanghang) in Madian outside Deshengmen
Summary: Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: East City:. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Muslim History, Northern Beijing, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source. This is part 5 of 6.
Part 5 of 6
When we arrived, the shop owner pointed to the young waiter as soon as we walked in and said, "Two people, seat them over there." The waiter then asked how much we wanted to eat and immediately brought over the meat and seasonings. Following the Beijing custom, we put our right foot on the ground and rested our left foot on the bench, then used long bamboo chopsticks to dip the meat slices in seasoning and place them on the grill. The grill was heated by a type of pine wood that produced very little smoke and had a faint, pleasant scent. The grill was very hot, and the meat slices sizzled the moment they touched it. After flipping them a few times, they were ready to eat. We had a sip of white liquor (baijiu) with each bite of meat, which felt a bit like being in a Mongolian yurt beyond the Great Wall. Toward the end of the meal, we stopped drinking and were served sesame flatbread (shaobing). We ate the flatbread with the grilled meat and finished with a bowl of porridge, which left us completely full. After putting down our bowls and chopsticks, we heard the shop owner calculating the bill: so much for this and that, with each unit of ten copper coins called a diao, adding it all up to the final total. Even while calculating the bill, he kept his knife moving and continued to slice. I was very satisfied with this meal and will definitely want to come back again. Every visit is rewarding. Eating well is one thing, but it is even more interesting to watch the owner’s style. With his big belly exposed, he stays busy but never flustered, truly living up to the description of being open and at ease.
Fuxuan Suohua by Zhang Zhongxing
Kaorou Wan as described by Jin Shoushen.
The owner of Kaorou Wan, Old Wan the Fifth, originally ran a stall selling flatbreads (bing). Back in the days when it was popular to sell grilled meat (zhengpao rou) from small carts, the Wan family was already selling grilled meat on a round iron plate (zhizi kaorou). They set up their stall at the west entrance of An'er Hutong. As time passed and business grew, they set up a shed to sell the meat and expanded from one iron grill plate to two. Every day, carriages and horses filled the entrance, yet the shop remained just a shed. Kaorou Wan uses only high-quality young beef (kaorou wan specializes in beef), which makes the meat tender and delicious. Wan Laowu is very skilled. He hand-cuts about 100 jin of beef every day. He handles all the sales himself, cutting meat and calculating the bill at the same time. He is so focused that he never makes a mistake, even with the price of a single cucumber.
Life in Old Beijing by Jin Shoushen, Kaorou Wan.
Kaorou Wan uses fuel like pine cones and pine branches that give off a fragrant scent while grilling. The fire at Kaorou Wan burns bright, and you can smell the pine aroma from far away.
Inside Kaorou Wan, the tables have special iron grills (zhizi) where diners grill the meat as they eat. First, marinate the meat slices in a sauce made of ginger juice, soy sauce, shrimp sauce (luxiayou), tomato, and egg white. Then, grease the grill with sheep tail fat and heat it up. When you are ready to eat, spread the sliced green onions on the hot grill and start cooking the meat. When the meat is almost cooked, sprinkle on some chopped cilantro and flip the slices. The beef tastes best when it turns purple, and the lamb tastes best when it turns pinkish-white. It is tender, smooth, juicy, and lean without being dry.
Time-Honored Brand: Wang Hong, Kaorou Wan.
Kaorou Wan is famous and busy because they pick high-quality meat, slice it thinly, use a full range of seasonings, and make it taste delicious. Kaorou Wan sends people to the beef and mutton market in Madian outside Deshengmen to buy fat sheep from north of the pass. The way Kaorou Wan slices meat is a family skill. They require every slice to be three inches long, one inch wide, and as thin as paper. This way, the meat on the grill (zhizi) cooks through, making it easy for customers to chew and swallow. You cannot have barbecue without green onions. They are cut into half-inch diagonal pieces for customers to use while grilling. Each customer gets a blue-rimmed porcelain bowl in front of them, filled with seasonings like dark soy sauce, sesame oil, cooking wine, sugar, chopped green onions, minced ginger, minced garlic, and salt. Back then, Kaorouwan let customers grill their own meat. Each person held a pair of wooden chopsticks over a foot long, stood with one foot on a bench and the other on the ground, and ate while they grilled.
Beijing's Commercial Streets and Time-Honored Brands by Wang Yongbin, Kaorouwan in 1930.
On the east side of the street inside Xuanwumen, near Rongxian Hutong, there used to be a small shop (really just a food stall) that only sold grilled beef. This was the famous Kaorouwan. This Kaorouwan has many unique features. Although the restaurant is small, it has been family-run for six generations. When I was around twenty years old, back in about 1930, the person running the place was a man over forty. Following the custom of Hui Muslims, Beijingers respectfully called him Wanba, which means Master Wan. He had a large head, thick eyebrows, and bright, piercing eyes. He was short and sturdy, moved quickly, and had a sharp mind with great organizational skills. He was very strict about choosing meat and only used the chuck (shangnao). His meat-slicing technique was fast and skillful. He cut large, thin slices that were free of gristle and veins, making the meat incredibly tender and rich. The beef had a milky aroma and tasted delicious when grilled, which is why Kaorou Wan has kept its fame for so long.
Kaorou Wan was just a small shop with two gray sheds set up on the sidewalk by the road. It was divided into an inner and outer room. The inner room held two grilling plates (zhizi). Because so many people came to eat, they used extra-large ones, with a diameter of up to three feet, set over a fire basin with an iron ring. Below were large round tables, and each table could fit ten people standing around it. People eating the grilled meat had no seats. They would stand with one foot on a long bench. All the seasonings, meat, bowls, flatbreads (bing), and wine were placed on the edge of the round table. Diners held wooden chopsticks two feet long—as thick as rattan, otherwise you could not reach the grill through the crowd—and waved their arms to eat heartily. You can imagine how wild and rugged the scene was. Beef is sold by the bowl, with each full bowl weighing ten taels (liang) by the old scale, and half-bowls are also available. For an average adult, ten taels is enough, and those with a bigger appetite can just add half a bowl more. Condiments are sold individually, such as a small dish of green onions or soy sauce, and you can add or remove items like sesame flatbread (shaobing) as you like. You had to bring your own liquor at first, but later they started selling liquor too, at two taels per bowl. Back then, a full meal for one person cost five or six jiao, which was a big expense. An ordinary person could eat a simple meal at a small restaurant without liquor for less than two jiao, so spending five or six jiao on a meal was considered extravagant for most residents.
Every late autumn, the smell of roasted meat would drift through Xuanwumen Street, which was quite tempting. The customers were mostly working-class people and ordinary citizens; the wealthy and powerful never came here. Later, Kaorou Wan became famous. Wealthy and powerful families heard about it, came to taste the delicious roast beef, and spread the word. Soon, prominent figures arrived in cars with their servants, and even noblewomen dripping in jewelry came to visit. These people did not mind losing their status, squeezing in between sweaty, hungry men to eat roast meat with long wooden chopsticks. Master Wan was not moved by this. He did not consider setting up a private room, nor did he stand up to flatter or entertain them. He kept doing things his own way and treated everyone the same. This style was a valuable quality among small Beijing merchants at the time.
Kaorou Wan not only had excellent meat, but Master Wan also had a unique, simple, and meticulous style, skilled and refined techniques, a sharp mind, and an organized memory. These things left a deep impression in my observations and memories. Since he only had a small business with two gray sheds, he did not have many staff. Besides himself, I remember there were only two young assistants. They just ran back and forth, moved supplies, and washed the bowls and chopsticks. Besides keeping the accounts, greeting guests, and looking after their coats, his main job was standing at the counter to slice meat. He was so skilled at slicing meat that even when twenty people ate at once, he never ran out. When the place was packed and people were bumping into each other looking for seats, he kept his eyes and ears open. He muttered calculations, sliced meat without stopping, greeted guests, and made sure people were served in the order they arrived. This person arrived first, please sit over there. Please wait a moment, you arrived just after this person. While doing all this, he also collected money and nodded goodbye to guests. At the same time, he noticed if someone took the wrong umbrella or where someone else had hung their hat and coat. His calm and organized way of working was truly amazing.
Memories of Snacks: Jin Yunzhen
3. Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop inside Xuanwumen
To the east of Liaoyuan Department Store, there used to be a Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop. It was the first shop on the west side of the north entrance of Xuannei Street before it was torn down for road expansion. The door is on the north side. Through the glass window on the south side, you can see the owner selling goods with high-quality beef and mutton behind him. This Hui Muslim beef and mutton shop had unique features, the first being its name. Shops selling halal beef and mutton are called beef and mutton shops or mutton shops, never just meat shops. The second feature is how they sell the meat. All the beef and mutton for sale is hung up on hooks. The third feature is how customers ask for meat. When a customer comes to buy meat, the shopkeeper asks how they plan to cook it—stewed, braised, or flash-fried—and then selects the right cut for them. Fourth, the knife technique. When using the knife, the shopkeeper grips the handle with their thumb, middle, ring, and little fingers, while resting their index finger on the spine of the blade. Fifth, the packaging. In summer and autumn, they wrap the meat in fresh lotus leaves, and in winter and spring, they use dried lotus leaves before handing it to the customer to carry away.
This Hui Muslim beef and lamb shop sells homemade roasted lamb (shao yangrou) every day after 4:00 p.m., and you can smell the delicious aroma all around the neighborhood. You can spend two or three jiao to buy some roasted lamb and ask the shopkeeper to let you take a bottle of old broth (laotang) on credit, then go home and pour the stewed meat broth over noodles for a truly great dinner.
Memories of the shops at the Xidan Archway from 'Past Stories of Xicheng, Beijing 7'. Ma Enci
4. Youyishun Restaurant at the Xidan intersection inside Xuanwumen
Fried dough cakes (youbing) from Youyishun Snack Bar
At that time (Wang Dongsi: 1970s), Youyishun Snack Bar occupied four and a half storefronts. The dining area was spacious with over 20 square tables, seating more than 120 people at once. However, more breakfast customers stood to eat than sat down. Just the breakfast production and service staff numbered over 20 people. For breakfast, they fried four bags of flour (200 jin) into dough cakes. Four people working two frying pans had to make about 2,000 dough cakes. Because they opened four windows for sales, four long lines formed as soon as they opened the doors. With such high sales, they could not keep up if they fried the dough cakes to order. They had to fry 500 of them before opening. If they placed them in enamel trays, the poor airflow would make them soft. They used specially made rectangular wire racks and had to fry them a bit crispier to ensure they did not go limp or collapse. Deep-frying until crispy uses more oil, which naturally lowers the profit margin, but we choose lower profits to ensure quality. Business hours are from 6:00 to 13:00, with daily sales around 1,000 yuan, and 400 to 500 yuan of that is sold in just the first two hours of breakfast. The shop assistant has to collect food stamps and cash while handing goods to customers, a job that requires a quick mind and fast hands and feet. The shop assistants are all young women around 20 years old, and after two hours of busy work, they take turns resting for a moment, which they call catching their breath.
Beijing Cultural and Historical Data: Youyishun and Beijing Snacks. Ling Enyue (Wang Dongsi: The author was an employee at Youyishun in the 1970s).
5. Dong Siba's spiced lamb head (jiangyangtou) inside Deshengmen
For red-style sheep head (hongzuo yangtou), besides the roasted sheep head sold at mutton shops in summer, there is also soy-sauce sheep head (jiang yangtou). Braised lamb head (jiang yangtou) also comes from outside Deshengmen. The inventor was Dong Siba. His braised lamb head has a deep flavor, and the 'walnut meat' part is especially interesting. Dong set up his stall at the entrance of Yixing Wine Vat (now changed to Beiyixing) north of Guozishi inside Deshengmen. Over time, he gained many customers, and some even wanted to sell his goods wholesale. It gradually became a workshop for braised lamb head, where he not only sold it himself but also produced it in large quantities for others.
The Life of Old Beijingers by Jin Shushen
6. Xue Siba's steamed lamb (zhengyangrou) outside Deshengmen
Regarding steamed lamb (zheng yangrou), the 'Dumen Jilue' only says, 'Steamed lamb, meat stall on the east side of Madian Road outside Deshengmen.' This is correct, but it is not very detailed. The inventor of steamed lamb was Xue Sanba from the Daoguang era. He was a Hui Muslim who lived in Madian outside Deshengmen. It is still a secret recipe of the Xue family, located on the west side of Guanxiang Road in Deshengmen. There are imitations, but the taste is nowhere near as good as what the Xue family makes. To make steamed lamb, select the finest lamb and cut it into large squares. Coat the raw meat thoroughly with yellow bean paste (huangjiang), add Sichuan peppercorns and five-spice powder, and let it marinate in a jar for three days. Take it out and steam it until cooked. The flavor goes deep, and it melts in your mouth like cheese. The difference between the real and the fake is that the real one has bright, clear colors and no bits of lamb spilling out. The second point is that the saltiness is even because it is braised in sauce before being steamed; it is not too salty, yet it can stay fresh for a long time without spoiling. The third point is that it melts in your mouth and does not have the problem of having tough, fatty bits.
The Life of Old Beijingers by Jin Shushen
7. Yang's lamb stall (yangrouchuangzi) on Guanxiang Street at Deshengmen
The Yang Family Lamb Shop (Yangji Yangrou Chuangzi) does not have a large storefront. The two-room front is the business area, while the small courtyard and three rooms in the back are used for raising sheep, slaughtering sheep, and housing the shop staff. The storefront of the Yang Family Lamb Shop consists of two rooms. One room is where they sell the lamb, featuring a plain, unpainted wooden cutting board (baicha) about 7 feet long and 4 feet wide, placed right under the window. They open the window to start business. Customers cannot enter the shop and must stand outside the cutting board to buy meat. Because the butcher's block for cutting meat was long and wide, like a bed, people called lamb shops lamb beds (yangrou chuangzi). In the past, lamb shops in Beijing were all set up this way. Another part of the shop had a wooden door, and outside the window next to it sat an oil table with bamboo steamers holding steaming hot white flour lamb and cabbage buns (baizi).
This Yang's Lamb Bed also sold white flour lamb buns. They bought their sheep at the Madian Sheep Market on the north side of the Deshengmen gate. They went to the market every four or five days, bringing back about ten fat, big-tailed white sheep each time to keep in the backyard pen for a few days before slaughtering them. With a steady rotation of sheep in the pen, they never ran out of stock and always had fresh, tender meat from live sheep to slaughter.
On a normal day, they sold two sheep, but when autumn arrived, they were busiest and could sell three or four sheep a day. The white flour lamb and cabbage buns at Yang's Lamb Bed had thin skins, big fillings, plenty of meat, and a great taste. They were famous for a time, and with so many people buying them, they were sold out every day. Local residents love buying steamed buns (baozi) from Yang's Lamb Stall (Yangji Yangrou Chuangzi). Cart drivers, street vendors, and travelers passing through Deshengmen Gate also come here to buy a few to eat.
Beijing's Suburban Towns and Old Brands by Wang Yongbin.
8. The sheep market (yanghang) in Madian outside Deshengmen
