According to a Chinese saying, no visit to Beijing is complete if you miss seeing the Great Wall or dining on Beijing (or Peking) Roast Duck. The best seasons to eat it are spring, autumn and winter. The hot roast duck will be brought to the dining table by the chef where he will slice it into more than 100 thin flakes, each having its piece of crispy skin.

Instant-boiled mutton, in Chinese called “suan yang rou”, also called the Mongolian Fire Pot, was created in the Yuan Dynasty. The chosen mutton ususally come from the back, rear legs or tail of a killed sheep. It will then be cut into slices. The boiled mutton is fresh and tender, not greasy.

Rice Balls with Sweet Fillings, in Chinese called “Aiwowo”, is first appeared in the Yuan Dynasty. It is a small round pastry made from steamed glutinous rice, with different stuffing, such as hawthorn cake, rock sugar powder, sesame, green plum fruit, or mashed Chinese jujube. It were then well received by the imperial families in the Ming Dynasty. Now it is one of Beijing’s popular snacks.

Pea flour cake, in Chinese called “Wan Dou Huang” was originally a kind of dim sun made of pea flour and later became a favorite in the imperial kitchen. It was said that Dowager Empress Ci Xi liked it for its soft taste. The smashed pea pastes are added to sugar and sweet-scented osmanthus and to be served when cooled. The finished cake is cut into two-inch cubic pieces and served with red sweet dates. It has a pleasing appearance and good taste.

This rice-flour cake with yellow appearance in Chinese is called “ludagun”, if direct translated into English, called Rolling Donkey. The name is quite interesting, it describes the way the dumplings rolling in, while the fried soybean flour resembles a donkey rolling about in dust. It is a traditional Beijing snack. First the steamed glutinous millet or sticky rice dumplings are put into fried soybean flour and then added to the sweetened bean paste. Good ones should taste sweet and sticky.

Beijing Travel Guide