Chinese food goes Turkic at Vancouver Uyghur restaurant

Chinese food brings dim sum and wonton noodle soup to mind for many, butthe selection will be a little more diverse at Vancouver'sChopstick Fest.

The festival features more than 30 Chinese restaurants offering prix fixe menus. One restaurant that might expand notions of Chinese food is Efendi Uyghur, which features food from China's Uyghur ethnicity.

"This is a really good opportunity for me to introduce my culture to other people," manager MinaNeurjiangtoldOn The Coast'sVivianLuk.

Neurjiang says her children often don't know how to explain where they're from when people ask them, because Uyghur culture isn't well known.

"I don't want to let them get upset with that. I hope this restaurant business can be a bridge for me to deliver my culture."

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Different cuisine

The Uyghur people are a Turkic minority originating fromthe western Xinjiang region of China, which borders several Muslim-majority countries.

Like those countries, Uyghur people are largely Muslim and speak a Turkic language.As for their cuisine, it's very different from more familiar Chinese food.

"Our place is mostly the desert, right? We don't have seafood, but great, great lamb," Neurjiang said.

Neurjiang highlighted the rice pilaf with lamb shoulder and lamb kebab as must-eats on Efendi Uyghur's menu, but also mentioned the noodles, hand-pulled by her parents every day.

Making the noodles is an important job, Neurjiang says, but she says her role is important, too.

"My role is always to explain to my customers where I am from," she said. "I never [get tired of it]because I am proud. The more people know about us, it makes me more happy."

Chopstick Fest begins Oct. 15 and runs until Oct. 30.

With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast

To hear the full story, click the audio labelled:Chinese food goes Turkic at Vancouver Uyghur restaurant