Long County Mutton and Bread Soup 陇县羊肉泡馍
Long County Mutton and Bread Soup is featured among the local specialties of Shaanxi.
Long County Mutton and Bread Soup (陇县羊肉泡馍) is served in a large bowl with abundant broth and tender meat. Fresh unleavened bread is broken into pieces by the diner before the meat and soup are poured over it.
How it is eaten
The bread comes straight from the pan. Diners tear it according to their preference while the soup cooks, then receive the meat and liquid over the pieces. Coriander is added on top; in Long County (陇县), it is also called yansui (芫荽).
Chilli and sweet pickled garlic or raw garlic accompany the hot bowl. Long County’s culture and tourism bureau describes the soup as oily but not greasy and singles out the Lijiahe (李家河) version for its local reputation.
Where it comes from
Eating the dish early in the morning is a local habit, particularly in winter. Workers and students also make a weekend morning meal of it.
The soup appears at rural temple fairs, especially those after the summer harvest. Alongside the opera performances and food stalls, adult children sometimes take a bowl to elderly parents who find it difficult to go out.
Sources & reading
Written from the linked sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer on 2026-09-26. Recipes and servings vary between kitchens.