Across China: Appetizing Lanzhou beefs up beef noodles for foreign attraction

LANZHOU, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province and birthplace of Lanzhou beef noodles, has seen many foreigners learning to make noodles in recent years.

Lanzhou beef noodle has a history of about 200 years. Having been rated as one of the top 10 famous noodles in China, the hand-pulled noodles have been accepted by gastronomes across the world.

Studying at colleges in Lanzhou, Dvumarov Takhir and other students from Kazakhstan are attending a training class on Lanzhou beef noodles

Takhir said that he fell in love with Lanzhou beef noodles when he first ate them three years ago when he came to the city.

"There seems to be a magical power in the hand of the cook. He just stretched a lump of dough, and a big bowl of beef noodles was ready for me right after I found a seat in the restaurant," Takhir said. "I'm obsessed by the taste of Lanzhou beef noodles and drink all the soup every time."

When he knew there was a chance to learn Lanzhou beef noodle-making he applied to join the course instantly."It seemed to be very easy, but it's easier said than done," said the 23-year-old man, who has been learning to knead and pull dough for 10 days.

"My arms were aching at the beginning. I would have given up if I didn't like the noodles," he said, adding that he wants to cook Lanzhou beef noodles for his family.

Different from Takhir, Kozhevnikov Nikolay said he would run a Lanzhou beef noodle restaurant in his country after graduation.

"China and Kazakhstan have seen more frequent trade contact since the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative, and a growing number of Chinese businessmen come to Kazakhstan. Introducing this food to Kazakhstan can enhance cultural and people-to-people exchanges between our two countries," Nikolay said.

Alfraih Abdulaziz Nasser, from Saudi Arabia, is also taking part in a Lanzhou beef noodle cooking lesson at another training school.

This is the second time that he has participated in such a lesson.

"Only through studying can I understand that a bowl of delicious beef noodles contains dozens of processes, including selecting materials, cooking the broth, kneading and stretch dough. Only one step wrong will affect the taste,"said the Ph.D candidate at Lanzhou University. "I will focus on making soup and chili oil this time," he said.

"We have spaghetti in Italy, but Lanzhou beef noodles are totally different. Beef noodles use more ingredients with rich soup," said Ilaria, a master student at Lanzhou University.

"It will take at least three months to master skills of making Lanzhou beef noodles. Patience is the most important thing," said Zhao Xinmin, a teacher at Xinglong Lanzhou Beef Noodles Vocational Training School.

"To make these foreign students better understand how to make beef noodles, teachers slow down the course and teach them step by step," Zhao said.

Sun Yanhe, who's in charge of academic affairs at the school, said that the school also provides training concerning business startups and management.

"We provide such kinds of training and supports to foreign learners so that they can help spread our food culture and let more people across the world know about Lanzhou beef noodles," Sun said.

So far, there are more than 110 Lanzhou beef noodle restaurants in 40 countries and regions across the world. Enditem