Dried Jerky · FFET10413
Dried beef (niurougan, beef jerky)
Made from seasoned, dried beef; Inner Mongolia has both handmade air-dried and factory heat-dried types.
Air-dried and heat-dried meats such as beef jerky and rou fu.
Niurougan is a meat product made by seasoning and drying beef. Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Yunnan are major processing areas, and Inner Mongolia's beef jerky includes traditional handmade air-dried and modern factory heat-dried types.
When
The available material does not establish when today's niurougan originated. Secondhand accounts of texts from the 13th and 14th centuries concern Mongol dried meat, borts, mainly made from horse meat; they do not establish that niurougan descended from it.2
Where
Major processing areas include Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Yunnan.1
How
Inner Mongolia's beef jerky is made through traditional manual air-drying or modern industrial heat-drying.1
Why
Drying is a defining feature of niurougan, with air-drying and heat-drying representing different processing methods.1
Impact and influence
A Chinese-language overview of dried meat says it is usually made from chicken, pork or beef, often vacuum packed, and is a New Year gift and festive food in mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore. The overview cites no source, so this is a general statement and is not specific to niurougan.3