Welcome to the Meat Market

Ana and I have been doing a lot of cooking lately.  For fresh ingredients, we prefer to go to the local 农贸市场， or Farmer's Market.  Similar to the underground market that Kim and I frequented in Dalian, Shihezi's main market is in a dank, dimly lit building with dubious sanitation.  We get almost everything, from vegetables, to condiments and spices, to freshly (we hope!) butchered meat.

Here's the Han Chinese (non-Halal) meat area of the market.



The meat is laid out on sketchy pieces of cardboard. Forget about refrigeration.



You can get all sorts of things. Pig heads, pig feet, innards galore...



Tell the lady how much you want, and she'll obligingly go to work with axes and other tools.



I like this guy. I don't consume large amount of sausage, but if I do, I get it from him.



The Uighurs are stationed near several entrances, where they sell their Halal meat, and vegetables take up the other side of the market.



When contemplating a cut, you should definitely poke, touch, pick up, and handle the meat with your unwashed hands as much as possible.



Don't worry about putting out your cigarette, as the butchers themselves sometimes smoke while working.

Much as the uncleanliness of the places makes me shudder, I genuinely enjoy shopping here.  You can't get this kind of experience in the US anymore.  We buy all of our conveniently shrink-wrapped food products at the supermarket, where health code is supposedly protecting consumers.  Gone is the old-time butcher.  I'll really miss Chinese markets when I come home!

Ok, I think I've sufficiently tormented my vegetarian parents.  (Sorry, Mom and Dad!)  On to other topics...