Best Restaurants to Eat Yangrou Paomo in Xian

Paomo is a specialty of Shaanxi cuisine and is a typical food eaten in the city of Xi’an. It is a hot stew of chopped-up steamed leavened bread (known regionally as mo (馍) or mantou (馒头), cooked in lamb broth and served with lamb meat, sometimes substituted with beef. Shaanxi Paomo is made into two types: Crumbled Flatbread in Mutton Stew (Yangrou Paomo) and Hulutou Paomo. Tourists usually try the former one while the native Shaanxi people adore the latter one, however, most tourists are no fan of Hulutou Paomo due to its unique flavor. Yangrou Paomo (羊肉泡馍) is made of lamb soup and a great amount of “mantou”. When making this dish, the cook breaks the bread into small pieces and adds them to the lamb soup, usually this step is done by the customers themselves, and it is also a special way of experiencing Xi’an life. The beef version is Niurou Paomo (牛肉泡馍). Paomo is often eaten with pickled garlic and chili sauce.