Uyghur Flavors at Chinese Halal Cuisine

Photo by Robb Walsh

Cumin lamb is my favorite lunch special at Chinese Halal Cuisine on Bellaire, the subject of this week's Café Review. The pungent aroma of this spicy lamb dish might remind you of Tex-Mex, since cumin, chiles and garlic are major components in Chinese Muslim Uyghur cooking.

China's Xinjiang Province in the westernmost part of China, is where many Uyghurs live. It borders Afghanistan, along with several other predominantly Muslim countries, and Chinese Halal cooking has become very popular throughout the region. It's also the inspiration for Indo-Chinese cooking at such Houston Desi restaurants as Masala Wok, Halal Wok and others.