Beef or lamb tripe cut into strips, dipped in boiling water for a few seconds until just crisp, and eaten with a sesame-paste sauce.
What makes it baodu
Tripe, cleaned and cut by part, each part blanched for its own few seconds.
Crisp and springy — a moment too long and it turns to rubber.
A dip of sesame paste, fermented tofu, vinegar, chilli oil and coriander.
Where it comes from
A Hui Muslim snack of the old city, sold since at least the Qing dynasty; several of Beijing's best-known baodu shops were founded by Hui families and have run for generations. Each part of the stomach has its own name and its own timing, some cooked for barely a breath.
Beijingers say it's best eaten in autumn, when the weather turns and appetites come back.
How it varies
Bàodǔ rén
Only the thickest, most tender part of the tripe, and the most prized.