25 Bejing dishes you have to try, Pt.2

6. Roast chestnuts
There’s always a long queue for these hot nuts at Fragrant Autumn Chestnut. Here, noisy machines roast petite chestnuts (15RMB per 500g), from nearby Huairou County, that are golden sweet and peel nice and easy.
Fragrant Autumn Chestnut. Open 8.30am-9pm daily. 2 Dianmen Dong Dajie (north-east corner at the intersection of Dianmenwai Dajie), Xicheng district (6401 6838)

7. Mala xiangguo
Some say mala xiangguo is a Beijing interpretation of Sichuan food, while others say it’s actually called gan guo, a dry hotpot from Hunan where you can choose from a kitchen sink of ingredients by portion. Choose your heat level from wimpy to nuclear and, soon enough, a big black bowl (from 50RMB) will show up with an alarming pile of two types of red chillies, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise and other spices, and everything you ordered. Use the wooden paddle to toss the ingredients occasionally to mix up the flavours and dip in.
Lao Chef Ji. Open 11aam-10pm daily. F5-03, Fifth Floor, U-Center (across from Grandma’s Kitchen), Chengfu Lu, Haidian district (6266 6180)

8. Milk custard
There’s an obsession with yoghurt and milk custard in Beijing. While we love the yoghurt at Kashgar (see 19), this place vies for our attention too and also does nailao, a milk custard made from rice wine that translates as cheese(8RMB). Wen Yu is the third generation in his family carrying on the tradition and has made folks line up for seven years in the trendy hutong heartland of Nanluoguxiang. Imitators encroach on all sides so beware and make sure to go early – it sells out in the afternoon, and you have to see the queues to believe them.
Wen Yu’s Milk Custard Shop (Wenyu Nailao Dian). Open 11.30am-until there’s nothing left, daily. 49 Nanluoguxiang, Dongcheng district (136 9330 9819)

9. Roast fish
Rumour has it this dish was created near the university campuses of Haidian. Grass carp (36.8RMB per 500g) is the fish that’s usually used here. It’s butterflied, roasted, set on a shallow chafing dish and simmered with your choice of sauces: mala; spicy hot pickled; or black bean. There’s also a choice of additional vegetables, including asparagus, lettuce, lotus, celery, smoked tofu and more (10RMB each). It’s best to reserve, if you can.
Zhu Yu Fang. Open 5.30-9.30pm daily. 12 Waijingmao Pingfang, Chaoyang district (6481 2572)

10. Chuan’r
If a flight to Xinjiang isn’t in your plans, make your way over to the brand-spanking new Muslim canteen at the Beijing Language and Culture University where you can order a choice of cuts, including roast mutton chops, shashlik, and halabi kebab (like a long meatball). The cheapest standard chuan’r will set you back 3RMB, and the roasted balls aren’t testicles, but really just a meatball of ground lamb (5RMB). For those who prefer a more meaty bite, roast mutton is just 10RMB.
BLCU Muslim Restaurant. Open 11am-10pm daily. 15 Xueyuan Lu (inside BLCU south gate and to the left), Haidian district (8230 3278)