MUZIChinese Matrix
Northern Chinese Hotpot · FFET10126
Thin lamb swished in clear broth in a copper pot, dipped in sesame sauce; Donglaishun's craft became national ICH in 2008.
A copper chimney pot holds clear broth with scallion, ginger slices, goji and dried shrimp; in front is a white plate of thin lamb rolls by a small bowl of sesame sauce, with chopsticks angled across the plate's front edge.
The northern hotpot: thin slices of mutton cooked in a copper pot and eaten with a dipping sauce.
Old Beijing copper-pot lamb hot pot is thinly sliced lamb swished in clear broth in a copper pot and dipped in a sesame-paste sauce. In the history recorded in 2021, hot pot was a winter essential at the Qing court and within reach of ordinary Banner households; over 1,550 pots were used at the banquet held in the first year of Jiaqing (1796). The entry Bo Xia Gong in Lin Hong's Song-dynasty Shanjia Qinggong describes thin meat swished in a small pot, an early account of this way of eating, but not of Beijing lamb hot pot. The beef and mutton cooking craft (Donglaishun instant-boiled mutton craft) entered the national intangible heritage list in batch 2 in 2008. Ding Deshan founded Donglaishun in 1903 near the north gate of Dong'an Market. No dated Beijing text naming instant-boiled mutton was found.
Old Beijing copper-pot lamb hot pot is lamb cut into thin slices, swished in boiling clear broth in a copper pot, and eaten with a dipping sauce made from sesame paste, along with sesame flatbread and sweet garlic.2,4,5,6,8,9
The entry Bo Xia Gong in Lin Hong's Song-dynasty Shanjia Qinggong describes slicing meat thin, seasoning it, swishing it piece by piece in a small pot of water and eating it with a dip; it uses rabbit and adds that pork or lamb can be cooked the same way. This is an early account of the technique, not of Beijing lamb hot pot. Hot pot was a winter essential at the Qing court and within reach of ordinary Banner households. The banquet held in the first year of Jiaqing (1796) used over 1,550 pots. Zhengyanglou opened in 1854, and Ding Deshan founded Donglaishun in 1903. No dated Beijing text naming instant-boiled mutton was found; the quotation from the Qingbai Leichao in the 2021 account is second-hand, and the original wording was not checked.1,2,3,5
Beijing. Donglaishun began near the north gate of Dong'an Market, around Wangfujing.1
Different cuts of lamb are sliced thin and dipped briefly into a pot of plain water with ginger and scallion, sometimes with goji berries or dried shrimp, then lifted out and dipped in sauce. The sauce uses sesame paste with fermented bean curd, chive-flower sauce and shrimp oil. The two-eight sauce documented in 2025 uses about 8 parts sesame paste to 2 parts peanut butter, mixed with bean curd juice, chive-flower sauce and chili oil. The craft covers cutting the lamb, preparing the pot, pickling sweet garlic and seasoning.1,2,5,6,8,9
The available account gives no direct reason. Hot pot was a winter essential at the Qing court and within reach of ordinary Banner households. Halal hot pot houses include Donglaishun, Jubaoyuan and Nanmen Shuanrou. The pot holds water with scallion and ginger, sometimes with goji berries.2,5
The Donglaishun instant-boiled mutton craft entered the national heritage list in batch 2 in 2008. The restaurant moved from its original site, many records and craftspeople were lost, and the craft needs rescue and protection. The dish is a representative of Beijing cuisine. The tripe served with the hot pot later developed into the Beijing snack baodu.1,2,5,7
Legend has it that Kublai Khan, on campaign, wanted lamb, but the army could not wait for it to be cooked slowly. So the cook sliced the lamb thin, swished it in boiling water for a moment and served it.
Told in: Chinese Wikipedia records it as a legend, and English Wikipedia says the story has little historical backing; the sources listed do not say where it is told.
Grandma Li
This is a simplified home version, not the traditional restaurant method.
This is the simpler way I make it at home: no charcoal copper pot, just an electric pot, with a broth of plain water, ginger, scallion, dried shrimp and goji berries, and lamb bought already sliced thin. The sauce is built on sesame paste, without peanut butter. The amounts and timings in this recipe are my own choices at home, informed by three published accounts and recipes.
Allergens: sesame, soy, wheat, shellfish
Grandpa Li
Picks come from public lists and guides and were checked on the dates shown; places can change, so confirm before you go.
Beijing
Order: Copper-pot lamb hot pot
A June 2025 travel article names Donglaishun among the places in Beijing that serve copper-pot hot pot today. If you want to taste Old Beijing lamb hot pot, this is a place to start.
Checked on 2026-11-02
Beijing, Niujie in Xicheng District
Order: Copper-pot lamb hot pot
The same June 2025 article lists Jubaoyuan too. If you would like to try lamb hot pot around Niujie, this is one to consider.
Checked on 2026-11-02
Beijing, near the south gate of Tiantan Park
Order: Copper-pot hot pot
The same June 2025 article names Nanmen Shuanrou as well. If you want copper-pot hot pot near the Temple of Heaven, this is a place to try.
Checked on 2026-11-02
