Image: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain
Yinshan Zhengyao
Yinshan Zhengyao, or Proper and Essential Things for the Emperor's Food and Drink, was compiled by Hu Sihui, a court dietitian to the Yuan emperor, and presented to the throne in 1330. Combining recipes, materia medica, and dietary therapy, it reflects the cosmopolitan Mongol court, blending Chinese, Turkic, Mongol, and Islamic culinary traditions. Surviving through later Ming reprintings, it remains a foundational source for the history of Yuan foodways and medical nutrition.
Cooking from this book
Mutton soup with chickpeas and chickpea flour noodles
Signature dishOften cited as emblematic of the Yinshan Zhengyao is a fragrant mutton broth enriched with chickpeas and hand cut noodles, scented with warming spices. Compiled by the imperial dietary physician Hu Sihui for the Yuan court, the book reflects the Mongol taste for lamb and dairy alongside Chinese, Turkic and Persian influences. This particular dish captures that cosmopolitan exchange, presenting food as medicine and as a marker of dynastic identity at Khubilai's successors' tables.
An editorial note on a dish associated with this book, written for The Coquinist. It is not a reproduction of the book's recipe.
