Buuz

What it is

Buuz are steamed dumplings filled with minced meat, and they are probably the dish most visitors associate with Mongolian home cooking. The name comes from the Chinese word baozi, and the dumpling itself is a local version of a Chinese idea. A ball of minced mutton, lamb or beef, seasoned with onion or garlic, salt and sometimes caraway, is wrapped in a small round of wheat dough. The dough is pleated up around the filling, with a small opening left at the top so steam can escape and the dumpling does not burst.

Modern recipes sometimes add cabbage, carrot, potato or rice to the filling, and in Ulaanbaatar a dash of soy sauce or seasoning sauce is common. In the countryside, buuz are usually all meat and onion.

How it is made

Buuz are steamed rather than boiled, typically for 15 to 20 minutes. The dough stays fairly thick, which makes it strong enough to hold the hot juice that collects around the meat. Every cook folds them in a slightly different pattern, and experienced hands can shape a dumpling in seconds.

Before Tsagaan Sar, the Lunar New Year, making buuz becomes a family production line. Relatives divide the jobs: one mixes the filling, others roll dough, fold and seal, and the finished dumplings are laid out in the cold to freeze. Hosts expecting many visitors may prepare a thousand or more, and they are steamed in batches as guests arrive over the holiday. Occasionally a coin is hidden in one, and whoever finds it is said to have luck for the year.

When and where to try it

Buuz are eaten all year. Small cafes and canteens, known as guanz, serve them across Ulaanbaatar and in towns throughout the country, usually by the plate with milk tea and a simple salad. At Tsagaan Sar they are the main dish offered to every visitor, alongside the uuts, dairy foods and ul boov, and guests are expected to eat at least one at each home they visit.

Etiquette and tips

• Buuz are eaten with the fingers. Take a small first bite and let the hot juice cool for a moment, or drink it from the opening, before eating the rest.
• At Tsagaan Sar, accept the plate with your right hand or both hands and eat at least one, even if you have already eaten many at earlier visits.
• If you are vegetarian, ask in advance: meat-free buuz exist in some city restaurants, but are rare in the countryside.
• Joining a family to fold buuz before the holiday is one of the most welcoming ways to take part; ask your hosts whether they would like help.