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A Flavor Icon: Mongolian Beef

A FLAVOR ICON

by: MACKENZIE GOODMAN April 2020

Legend has it that when the Mongol Empire was at its peak, almost 1,000 years ago, it was Genghis Khan and his army that gave us what we now know as Mongolian Beef.

At the end of a long hard day of battle, the Mongols would make a large fire and use their shields as grills, as the Mongols believed that food should never be cooked directly on fire. With a freshly slaughtered cow or yak, they would use their swords to turn the meat and even eat with. They had brought along garlic and onions on their battles to help season and flavor the meat - along with a special sweet sauce that only the Mongols knew how to make.

Orkhon River in Central MongoliaGenghis Khan Monument

And while we know this is just a ‘legend’ it’s a lot more fun than the actual truth behind Mongolian Beef (spoiler alert, it doesn’t actually come from Mongolia, neither does Mongolian BBQ).

Regardless of the origin, it’s still one of our top selling dishes, and has been since the day we opened our doors in 1993. And we will forever tell the legend of Genghis Khan and his Mongolian Beef.