Xinjiang is a region in northwest China that shares its borders with Tibet, Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, and India (amongst others) and after centuries of migration is now home to several ethnic groups. This multiculturalism makes its way into their cuisine, with a host of preparation methods and ingredients that’s unlike the food in other parts of China.
A common
dish for the region is roasted kabab. At Xin Jiang Restaurant, the Xinjiang
style BBQ lamb kabob ($2.49 each) is probably their most popular dish - every
table seems to have a plate of gleaming metal skewers. It’s not something I
normally gravitate towards but decided to try it anyways given Zomato/Yelp
reviews say it’s one of the best in the city. The skewer was smaller than
anticipated, but well prepared so the lamb was just cooked through and tender.
Not surprisingly, there was a gamey taste, but it wasn’t overpowering given the
meat was covered with enough slightly spicy and curried dry rub.
The
wrapper on the steamed lamb and onion dumplings ($9.99) was too thick and still cracked, allowing the juices to escape. For such a
popular dish to Northern Chinese restaurants, it was poorly executed. Their menu
had limited flavours to choose from; if I had a choice, I would have ordered something else. Aside from the onion, the filling could
really benefit from other herbs or vegetables to compliment the lamb.
Xin
Jiang’s menu is vague on what’s in the handmade noodle with beef ($12.99). An
Uyghur dish, based on lamian,
it uses a similar flour-based pulled noodle that tends to be thicker. The
dish ended up consisting of boiled noodles tossed with a spicy soy meat broth
and chunks of bell peppers, tomato, hard onions, and beef. The chewy noodles
were enjoyable, I just wish there was more of it compared to all the other
ingredients.
Seeing
the spinach with firm tofu at a neighbouring table, it looked refreshing
compared to the heavier dishes we ordered. Being a last-minute add on, I didn’t
read the menu description and was greeted by a cold dish incorporating
a tangy vinegar taste … sort of like spinach with pickled tofu. While
refreshing, it’s best in smaller quantities, as like pickles it’s also very
salty.
Given
Xin Jiang is a smaller restaurant, all the aromatic smells co-mingle in the
rectangular dining room - you will reek of food afterwards. However, they
surprisingly have a lot of staff working, so customers are well attended to. My
palette hasn’t quite developed for Xinjiang cuisine yet, but with a menu that
rivals Pickle Barrel, maybe I’ll have to go back and explore more.
How To Find Them
Location: Markham, Canada
Address: 3636 Steeles Avenue East (in Metro Square)
Address: 3636 Steeles Avenue East (in Metro Square)
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Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
Is That It? I Want More!
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