Noodles · Xining Street Staple

Niangpi (酿皮, Qinghai Cold Wheat Noodles)

Photo: parodyfang / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

Xining vendors typically add cubes of spongy wheat gluten and a sharp mustard dressing, which sets it apart from the liangpi of Xi'an.

Steamed sheets of wheat starch batter are sliced into thick, chewy strips and dressed with chili oil, vinegar, and mashed garlic, sold from street carts across Xining. It is a close cousin of liangpi from neighboring Shaanxi.

Why it's made this way: As a Hui Muslim specialty adapted to Qinghai's colder, higher-altitude climate and local wheat and barley, it became a filling, portable street snack that needs no reheating.