Kashgar’s Sunday Market
China – Kashgar | Anno 1998
In Central Asia, and even far beyond, the Yekshenbe Bazaar or Kashgar Sunday Market is a household name
Every Sunday, Kashgar is overrun by an immense crowd. An estimated one hundred thousand of them. On foot, by bicycle, or by donkey cart, they stream in from far and wide. Some even come from neighbouring Pakistan
Some, rightly or wrongly, call it the largest market in the world
But it's a Uyghur affair par excellence. Han Chinese prefer not to be seen at the Sunday market. They prefer supermarkets for shopping
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Kashgar is a fertile oasis with ample water. Vegetables, corn, rice, wheat, and cotton are grown there, as well as melons, grapes, apricots, peaches, cherries, and especially pomegranates, the city's symbol
Hami melons are originally from Xinjiang. The flesh is crunchy and sweet
Boiled eggs are dyed red |
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Some people are literally bursting with money |
Very popular among the Uighurs is the girde nan, a bread roll that looks like a bagel, but with a base in it
The large, round and flat naan bread is also very popular
Both types of bread are baked in a tonur, a barrel-shaped earthenware oven. Once heated with wood or coal at the bottom of the vessel, the temperature inside can reach up to 480°C (896°F) |
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The rolls are stuck to the wall. The special flavour comes mainly from the direct contact with the flames and the smoke that is created when fat or juice drips onto the glowing coals |
A market without fast food stalls is like a pub without beer
A popular snack is manti, the dough balls filled with spiced lamb. They are cooked in large steamer baskets
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The way noodles are hand-pulled is fascinating. The dough's composition is crucial, with the correct ratio of wheat to water, depending on the ambient temperature. The dough is meticulously kneaded and stretched several times...
…and folded back on itself to align the gluten and significantly increase the dough's elasticity |
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Then the dough is cut into workable pieces and rolled in flour |
The dough is now stretched to double arm length and folded back on itself. This creates two strands. A second stretch and fold back produces four strands, and after three times there are eight |
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By occasionally turning the dough in flour and placing his fingers in the end loops, the noodle maker prevents the strands from sticking together |
After stretching and folding seven times, 128 noodle strands form the end result |
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The strings are boiled and served with vegetables and meat as laghman |
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A visit to the hairdresser... |
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...also for the little ones |
Uyghur men cannot leave the house without a head covering
A bargain?
In traditional Uyghur medicine, the four bodily fluids – blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile – play a central role. Being ill means your bodily fluids are no longer in balance
To restore that balance, traditional Uyghur medicine uses flowers, seeds, fruits, minerals and all kinds of animal ingredients such as… dried reptiles and amphibians
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There is no shortage of colourful children's beds |
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The beds are supplied with adapted instruments – for both boys and girls – to ensure smooth drainage through an opening
The most spectacular aspect of the Sunday market is perhaps Ulagh Bazaar, the livestock market held in the shadow of the old city. However, that will change in 2007. The government will move the livestock market to Pamir Dadao, about ten kilometres northwest of the city. This will make Kashgar a little less Uyghur
Trading cattle is almost exclusively a male affair
At the livestock market you can find a wide range of four-legged animals – sheep, goats, donkeys, cows, horses, camels… Only pigs are missing from the roll call in this Islamic community
In some sheep species, tail fat, or kurdyuk, serves the exact same function as the humps on a camel or dromedary: storing fat for leaner times. This fat deposit can weigh up to thirty kilograms. Kurdyuk is a succulent ingredient in manti, steamed dumplings filled with lamb
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The animal is inspected with an expert's eye
The key is to negotiate effectively. Pros and cons will be discussed back and forth, and the selling price will be determined through a game of offers and counteroffers
The merchant is confident, the buyer is still hesitant
The deal is settled |
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Satisfied with the purchase, having the first portion of food under the arm |
Count your winnings, but discretion is not guaranteed
You don't buy a horse without having ridden it
If necessary, put the cart before the horse…
…to see how it behaves
Jaak Palmans
© 2025 | Version 2025-08-27 15:00