Donkey Burger – What it is and famous restaurants in Beijing

Donkey burger or lvrou huoshao is a snack originating in Hebei, a province south to Beijing, and is nowadays very popular in northern China.

What it is

Although it is called a burger, it is quite different from the burger you are familiar with. First, the meat is not fried but stewed with various spices for hours. When you make the order, the cook scoops one piece of donkey meat from the saucepan and then shreds it with green chili pepper and cilantro leaves. Second, instead of floppy bread, it adopts huoshao, a roasted, semi-flaky bread pocket, and stuffs meat into it. There is no pickled cucumber, tomato, lettuce, or cheese.

The combination of the tender, juicy meat and the crispy huoshao brings a unique taste. In fact, in China, there is a saying that only the meat of a donkey can match the meat of a Chinese dragon in heaven.

Besides the donkey burger, most restaurants would also offer Menzi burger and Banchang Burger. The former is made from starch and the soup that boils the meat, while the latter is made of the donkey’s intestines. If you can temporarily put aside your prejudice and psychological discomfort, they will amaze you and bring a completely different experience.

Famous Donkey Burger Restaurants

Due to its simple making process and low prices, most restaurants majoring in donkey burger are quite small. So, please do not despise them because of their small areas and crude decorations.