FOOD

SPECIALITY: LMongolians appreciate a lot of milk products called “white food”, and that is what they offer first to visitors. They believe that eating milk products make longer the own life. The meat (especially mutton) or “grey food” has also its place in Mongolian cooking. Mongolians don’t eat fish. In UB restaurants offer you also international cooking
Guantz or soup-kitchen, serve good and plentiful helpings of traditional food for around 3- 4 euro. On countryside the guantz are often in a simple yurt. Now it has become easier to eat in restaurants even in small villages (the cards are often in English, but there is not always everything on the menu!) Serve Mongolian cuisine and some dishes of inspiration European. Sometimes vegetarian dish!
In nomadic families you will always welcomed with one or more cup of airak (fermented milk), cheese and salt tea: TO REFUSE IS TO OFFEND if you are allergic just tell it!
Under the ger they will offer you airak, yogurt, hormog, cream and cheese. Cheese (camel, horse, yak or goat) can be salted or sweet and you will find 1000 different types: advice: take only a small piece and if you like it you take more, and if not, choose something else… During summer, nomads won’t serve you meat because it’s the period where make dry meat for winter food, but for dinner you will find a little on your noodle soup (excellent). If you will be lucky, they will offer you vodka freshly distilled (exquisite drink).

VEGETARIAN : it’s difficult as even in 10 years vegetable and fruit arrived. Mongolia like so much meat you will find in any dish they can cook and in countryside the specialties are 3 or 4 all with meat!

WHERE TO BUY ? in U.B. you can find all you need in supermarkets. In small towns you can buy your missing fresh and basic products at the market or in grocery stores (delguur) but watch out for expiration dates! fruits and vegetables are sometimes rare in the soums. In the yurts you can buy cheese, yogurts, tea ... Count for 1p and for 30 days around 300 € for basic food. Privilege Mongolian products when shopping to go to the steppe, because much cheaper than imported products, fresh and good and especially benefit the local economy in addition to not having unnecessary polluting packaging.

LEAVE FOR STEPPE : you must be autonomous before leaving for your tour. Follow driver advice to buy everything you need. Buy water in big quantity or take a water filter. For cooking the drivers have a camping stove as well as kitchen equipment because depending on your circuit you could find yourself in a sparsely populated area and have to cook. It is also possible to rent stoves, see section "get around".
Don’t create litter... 10-15 years of tourism as already leave some prints especially on the area of classic tour and so try to take away your own litter.

MAKE YOUR OWN COOKING: take a camping stove with enough gas for your tour. Now possible to find gaz for Campoing Gaz brand. The drivers use camping stoves which work with bottled gas, the Korean stoves are like diplomatic suitcase, the cover protecting the fire from wind: ingenious system, it takes up very little place and can be bought in U.B.(50euro) you can also find different type of camping stove as one who works with petrol and it’s easy to keep with you some petrol in a bottle and buy some to nomads who have a jeep as one liter is enough for 5 days for 2 hot meals/day