Being somewhat lactose intolerant and not a fan of mutton, I really struggled with the meals at times. Given the country has harsh winters and is landlocked, the predominant meat is lamb, goat or beef, with very few vegetables. Outside of Ulaanbaatar, the only choice of meat on the menu was lamb, cooked in various forms.
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First meal in Mongolia
The first meal (and incidentally one of the most delicious) we had was at Modern Nomads, a restaurant next to our hotel. We ordered grilled beef and vegetables, and boortsog, deep-fried dough shaped like fingers, was served as an appetizers.
Guriltai shul
Soup noodles with strips of mutton (no surprise here). But the flavor was actually quite subtle, so it was easy to eat. The spring onions also helped.
Khuushuur
Deep-fried meat pastry filled with seasoned beef and/or mutton. I like anything pastry or curry puff-like, and this was delicious. Just the portions tend to be huge, and after the first few bites it gets too heavy. I could only eat half of it.
Tsuivan
A hearty staple dish made of hand-pulled noodles stir-fried with meat and fat, and a few root vegetables. Extremely gamey if it also contains “borts” (some kind of Mongolian jerky).
“Vegetarian” option
Two days in and I was already sick of mutton. Since they literally did not have any other meat, I got the “vegetarian” option.
Korean BBQ
On our first night in a ger camp, our guide did Korean BBQ with pork. Yay!
Buuz
Large steamed dumplings packed with minced mutton or beef. I had them in soup, which was flavoured with, you guessed it, mutton.
Korean ramen and tuna rice balls
At Khongoryn Els, our guide made us Korean ramen and tuna rice balls for lunch. It was a welcome reprieve from red meat.
Puutaatai Khuurga
Mongolian fried rice, actually reminded me more of plov in Central Asia. Of course the meat is mutton.
Roast chicken
At a cafe in the town of Bulgun, we finally found a place that served chicken! I almost cried as I had not eaten chicken in 5 days.
Yuna restaurant
In Dalanzadgad, the biggest city in South Gobi, our guide very kindly took us to a Korean restaurant chain known as Yuna after we signaled we were tired of mutton.
Fried chicken
Lunch stop on the way to Baga Gazriin Chuluu, in addition to a range of mutton dishes, the eatery served fried chicken with rice. I jumped at it.
Guriltai shul
This was a difficult bowl to get down, as it was prepared by a sheep-herding family that owned the ger camp we stayed in, and extremely gamey. I could only finish half of it and discreetly gave the rest to the dogs.
Suutei tsai
A salty milk tea traditionally made with mare’s or cow’s milk, often consumed as a comforting daily beverage.
Bento
On the way back to UB, got a “bento” of fried chicken, fries and sushi. I thought it was tuna in the sushi, imagine my surprise when I ate one and discovered it was…mutton.
UB eats
Back in UB, we went for Chinese food because we craved vegetables and light meals. Got wonton noodles, cucumber, and eggplant with mince. Felt healed.
The next day, we found an “expat cafe” that served very reasonably-priced lunch sets. We got lasagna.
On our last day, we grabbed a bite at a KFC that had just opened near our hotel. It was terrible – the chicken was astoundingly dry and there was no potato & gravy on the menu.
Last meal in Mongolia
Hearty chicken sandwich for breakfast at UB airport before my flight home.
If you are interested in reading more about my Mongolia adventures, also check out our customised itinerary for exploring the Gobi desert in 6 days, 5 nights.