Uyghur · rice
Lamb Pilaf (Polo)
抓饭 · Zhuāfàn
Uyghur lamb pilaf with carrot, onion and raisins. The festive centrepiece of any Xinjiang banquet.
Polo (lamb pilaf) is the festival centrepiece of Uyghur cuisine, similar to Uzbek and Tajik plov. Long-grain rice is cooked with lamb (often a whole lamb shank), shredded carrot, onion, raisins or apricots, and lamb fat. Served from a large communal platter; eaten by hand in the most traditional setting. Halal.
Where to try
Xinjiang: every restaurant. Outside Xinjiang: Uyghur restaurants in any major Chinese city.
Dietary notes
Lamb, rice. Halal.
Cities to try Lamb Pilaf (Polo)
Other northwest dishes
- Biangbiang Noodlesbiáng biáng 面
Wide, hand-pulled, belt-shaped Shaanxi noodles. The 'biang' character is the most complex in the Chinese language.
- Big Plate Chicken大盘鸡
A large-portioned Xinjiang braised chicken dish with potatoes, peppers and thick hand-pulled belt noodles.
- Hand-Grasped Lamb手抓羊肉
Large bone-in lamb pieces boiled in spiced water and eaten by hand — a communal dish of Inner Mongolia and the northwest.
- Laghman (Hand-Pulled Noodles with Lamb)拉条子
Uyghur hand-pulled wheat noodles with a lamb-and-vegetable sauce of tomato, pepper and onion.