Handy fare for the Xinjiang traveler

Is your image of Chinese food limited to thoughts of sweet and sour pork, squirrel fish, Kung Pao chicken and wanton or dumplings? Think again. China is home to 56 ethnic groups, and every one of them has a distinctive cuisine.

Let's visit Xinjiang, where the Uygurs celebrate life with great music and good food. Some of China's best-known folk songs were composed in Xinjiang, or inspired by its music, but the region's culinary secrets have been relatively undiscovered.

Lamb is a popular meat here and the food is halal. Oven-baked breads such as nang are stacked high on market stalls.