The winter is coming, and the weather is getting colder. It's time to eat some Chongming mutton to warm our stomachs.

As the saying goes, "Eat one white goat, save one cotton-padded jacket".

Here is a collection of Chongming mutton. Come to taste it!

What is a Chongming White Goat?

Chongming White Goat, together with white shrimp, white rice wine, and white lentils, are called Chongming’s four whites, among which white goat is the most famous. The white goat was introduced by the first immigrants on Chongming Island in the Tang Dynasty. The charming environment of the island, far away from pollution, boasts fresh air. White goat is a specialty bred in the island’s specific water and soil conditions. The tasty Chongming White Goat has the effect of warming the spleen and the stomach. With less fat content, it is easy to digest and absorb. Approved by the state, it is named Yangtze River Delta White Goat, which is a livestock breed under national key protection and development.

How to eat Chongming mutton?

01 Cold Dishes

Cut mutton, one of the famous dishes in Chongming, is boiled to keep its original taste. With various condiments, it tastes quite delicious. Every winter, a constant stream of diners comes to Chongming for it.

Cut goat liver is made by washing the liver before soaking it in water for five minutes. Then, boil the goat liver in a pot and remove the foam from the water. After 15 minutes, prick it with a chopstick. If there is no blood, it is done. Take it out of the pot and cool it down. Cut it into thin slices and dip them in soy sauce. It tastes freshly good.

02 Hot Dishes

Braised mutton is the most common home-cooked food in Chongming. After the mutton is cut into pieces, stir-fry it with hot oil until it is half-cooked. Then, add water, soy sauce, and ginger. Cover the pot and braise it until the mutton is rottenly soft and red. It has a fresh and sweet flavor with very tender meat.

Braised offal, according to the Chinese medicine theory, can "supplement the viscera with the viscera". With such nutrients as protein, fat, carbohydrate, calcium, phosphorus, iron, and vitamins B and C, the affordable flavorful food can nourish our spleen, stomach, liver, eyes, and blood.

Stir-fried mutton is cooked by quickly frying the sliced mutton in hot oil for 1 minute,  and stir fry it for another 2 minutes with onions, garlic, and scallions. The stir-fried mutton is smoothly tender and delicious with the fat wrapped in sauce, leading to an endless aftertaste.

03 Mutton Soups

To make goat hoof and taro soup, first, clean the hoof, and put it into a pot with boiling water and cooking wine for 5 minutes. Then, take the hoof out of the pot, wash it and cut it into large pieces. Put the pieces into a pressure cooker, and add water, cooking wine, ginger, scallion, garlic, and star anise. After the water is boiling, stew them for another 10 minutes before putting them in a casserole for stewing for another 40 minutes. Wash and cut a white radish into pieces, put them into the casserole to boil at medium heat, and stew for another 20 minutes. At last, put some salt, pepper, and chicken essence into the soup. It’s done.

To make mutton and yam soup, first, quickly boil the prepared mutton in a pot with boiling water and take it out. Remove the skin of the yam and clean it with water. Boil the mutton in a pot and remove the foams. Add scallions, cooking wine, star anise, and prickly ash, and stew it until it is well cooked. Then, put the yam in the pot to stew together. At last, add some salt, gourmet powder, and pepper. How flavorful!

Goat blood and tofu soup is delicious and can clear human intestines and stomachs. Goat blood can promote blood circulation and replenish blood, and tofu is rich in protein. The soup is very common in Chongming’s restaurants, and it is also a simple and convenient homemade food.

04 Roasted Mutton

Roasted mutton kebabs are made of diced mutton with sliced onions. The diced mutton and the sliced onions are marinated for about half an hour. Then, skewer the mutton into skewers; put the skewers on an iron tank with charcoal burning inside; sprinkle salt, chili, and cumin powder on the skewers; roast them for about 5 minutes; turn them over and sprinkle them with salt, chili, and cumin powder again. Continue roasting for another 5 minutes until fully cooked.

Grilled lamb chops are made as follows. First, trim the lamb chops; boil them in water and remove the blood foams; get the lamb chops marinated and cook them until they are 80% done; take out the lamb chops and hang them in the air; spread egg paste on the chops and put them in an oven; bake them for about 20 minutes and take them out on a plate; sprinkle cumin, pepper, and salt. Well done!

Roasted lamb legs are made of exquisite ingredients carefully pickled and roasted with the original sauce. The roasted lamb legs are golden in color. Dipped with cumin, they are soft and delicious, with a strong burnt fragrance. The smell is particularly attractive.

To make a roasted whole lamb, a fat and young lamb is chosen to have its wool shaven off, its viscera and sundries removed, and its mutton soaked in water for one hour. Then, marinate it in boiling water added with ginger, scallions, prickly ash, dried chili, coriander, and salt. After that, hang, roast, and roll it on the stove. Keep brushing oil while baking for two hours until it changes color and tastes crispy outside and tender inside.

Where to eat mutton in Chongming?

Dongjiang Mutton Restaurant

Dongjiang Mutton Restaurant is a time-honored restaurant in Chongming. Braised mutton, mutton soup, goat hoof, fried offal, etc. are recommended. You’d better try them all. The delicious mutton is waiting for you during the Dongjiang Mutton Festival (September to November).

Address: No. 7218, Tuancheng Highway, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-59693674

YangyangyangManor

In the Chongming white goat breeding base, you can taste the authentic mutton cuisine, and better understand the food, culture, and tourism related to the white goat.

Address: 50 meters south of the intersection of Beiyao Highway and Chenhai Highway, Zhongxing Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-69445678, 021-694477772

Yingdong Resort

Located in Chenjia Town, Chongming, the ecological village is not far for those driving from downtown Shanghai. The best goat meat is selected, so. the fat part is soft, while the lean part is not dry.

Address: Yingdong Village, Chenjia Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-59436276

Jinxiu Hotel

Jinxiu Hotel is a time-honored brand in Chongming. Owing to its famous chefs, the dishes are characterized by fine workmanship and superior taste. Its mutton cuisine has been praised by all sectors of society.

Address: No. 68, South Xinchong Road, Chengqiao Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-69699888

Yingtong Restaurant

Yingtong Restaurant is located at the north end of Bayi Road Pedestrian Street. With various cuisines, cooking styles, and fresh ingredients, the restaurant will offer you a surprising feast.

Address: No. 190, Beimen Road, Chengqiao Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-69696969

Xinyi Restaurant

Located in Tianhe Hotel, it faces the Yangtze River in the south. The mutton is cooked tender, the dishes are exquisite, and the environment is very comfortable. It is worthwhile for a family to come here for a delicious meal together.

Address: No. 178, Nanmen Road, Chengqiao Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-69690000

Xinhonglou Restaurant

The restaurant’s environment is of primitive simplicity, and it boasts of Chongming’s local flavor. There is a lot of mutton in every dish. The braised mutton is deliciously sweet, and the mutton in a stewed pot is not greasy. It is a farmhouse restaurant worthy of your visit.

Address: No. 1395, Beichen Highway, Chenjia Town, Chongming District

Tel.: 021-59409277

Yiqinyuan Resort

The resort’s dining environment is so good. The ingredients are well chosen, and the dishes are carefully designed by the chefs. The taste is superior thanks to the distinctive cooking method. Surrounded by green trees and fresh air, the restaurant is very enjoyable.

Address: No. 2089, Beiyan Highway, Chongming District

Tel.: 021 - 59338800

Mingzhu Lake Ecological Service Center

The restaurant is built next to the lake, where you can have a clear view of the whole lake. The dishes are attractive as the service center is just on the bank of Pearl Lake. Tourists can take a tour around Pearl Lake Park after the meal.

Address: Sanlu Highway, Chongming District

Tel.: 021 - 39633818

Shuixiufang Restaurant

The restaurant stands beside the water with a beautiful scene. It offers farmhouse dishes, among which the mutton is crisp and soft. You can't miss the scene and the dishes!

Address: Baohu Road Bridge, No. 928, Lugang Village, Luhua Town, Chongming District (near Mingzhu Lake)

Tel.: 021-59351177

The grey sky, the vast sea,

The wind blows the green island, and the white goats appear.

The remote clouds, the clear grass,

Chongming’s mutton gains its reputation.

As a foodie, you must not miss any food resort in Chongming.

Let's go to Chongming to taste the delicious mutton.