The delicious Shaanxi cuisine, with the “famous Chinese snack” beef and mutton paomo as the “general representative”, is not only loved by local people, but also by foreigners and foreign guests who come to Shaanxi.
However, to truly savor this delicacy to its fullest, there are certain proper ways of eating pita bread soaked in lamb soup that one must master.
1. Breaking the Bread
Before breaking the bread, wash your hands thoroughly. There are four basic steps to break the bread: The first step is “split”. Pick up the bread and split it evenly in half from the middle, then split each half into two parts, making it into four pieces.
The second step is “tear”. Tear each of the quarter – sized pieces of bread obtained in the previous step in half from the middle, creating two slices from each piece.
The third step is “pinch”. Pinch the bread pieces into the size of soybeans, neither in chunks nor in crumbs.
The fourth step is “roll”. Take the pieces of bread pinched into soybean – sized bits and roll them gently between the index finger and the thumb.
The fifth step is “shake”. Shake the bowl repeatedly to prevent any large pieces of bread from remaining in the bowl. If there are still some relatively large pieces, break them further.
The size of the bread pieces is of great importance. It is best that they are about the size of soybeans, and the pieces throughout the bowl should be evenly broken. Ensuring that each piece contains both the crust and the soft inner part of the bread is a basic skill honed by regular customers over time. If you don’t want to spend time breaking the bread by hand, you can opt for the time – and – effort – saving method of having the bread shredded by machine. However, the pieces shredded by machine are square – shaped with intact cut surfaces. Unlike those broken by hand, which have richly textured fracture surfaces, machine – shredded bread is not as good at absorbing the soup, resulting in a certain difference in flavor.
2. Cooking the Bread
After the diner has finished breaking the bread, the waiter will ask about your preferred way of cooking it. Generally, there are four common ways to cook pita bread soaked in lamb soup:
The first is “dry – soaked”. The broken bread is cooked repeatedly in the soup pot until the soup is completely absorbed into the bread, with only a little clear oil added before taking it out of the pot. The resulting soaked bread has distinct individual pieces. It tastes chewy, smooth, tender and delicious. Usually, native Xi’an residents or regular customers prefer this way of cooking.
The second one is “surrounded by water”. Cook the ingredients in a large amount of soup. In the middle are the bread pieces and mutton, and the soup surrounds the bread. This is commonly known as “surrounded by water”. It is the way most people prefer to have it.
The third is “mouthful of soup”. Popularly speaking, after finishing the pita bread soaked in lamb soup, only a mouthful of soup is left in the bowl. When cooking the bread, the heat needs to be precisely controlled to achieve the perfect doneness. Its characteristics are that there is just a mouthful of soup, and the bread is smooth, chewy, leaving a lingering aftertaste.
The fourth one is “separate serving”. As the name implies, it means having the soup and bread served separately in advance. For this way of eating, the soup and bread are consumed separately. The bread is soaked but not cooked, and the dish is accompanied by beef, mutton, vermicelli, garlic sprouts, coriander, etc. The bread used is leavened baked cake. This way of eating is fresh, refreshing, and highly fragrant. It is similar to the Weinan basin – style mutton (or beef) soup dish.
The delicious Shaanxi cuisine, with the “famous Chinese snack” beef and mutton steamed bread as the “general representative”, is not only loved by local people, but also by foreigners and foreign guests who come to Shaanxi.
3. Eating the Soaked Bread（Paomo）
When it comes to pairing with sweet – pickled garlic and chili sauce, true connoisseurs don’t touch these at the beginning as they can affect the original flavor of the dish. When they’re about halfway through and start to feel a bit腻 (greasy), they’ll eat one piece of sweet – pickled garlic, pick a little chili sauce and mix it into the bread (the amount should be enough to finish in one or two bites). Then, they’ll rinse their mouth with the complimentary soup and continue eating. This way, the flavor of the pita bread soaked in lamb soup remains intact. A delicious bowl of this dish has very little oil. It mainly showcases the aroma of the soup, making it a non – greasy delight to eat.
