Adelaide has Australia’s biggest Uyghur population and some of the best Uyghur food.
I had a really interesting conversation recently with someone here in Melbourne who is a member of Australia’s Uyghur community.
When I told her I was originally from Adelaide, she told me that it is home to the largest population of Uyghur people in Australia.
I’ve always loved Uyghur food, so this excited me.
Nonetheless, I was still a bit too ignorant about Uyghur culture for my liking. So I did some research.
Adelaide’s Uyghur community is the biggest in Australia
The Uyghur people are a Turkic ethnic group from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwest China.
Many Uyghurs in Adelaide have fled due to fears of persecution and human rights abuses in China. The Uyghur community in Adelaide is now estimated to be 1,500.
Since 2017, up to a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities have reportedly been detained in “re-education” camps, where they are subjected to indoctrination, forced renunciation of religious practices and other forms of abuse that some experts suggest may constitute crimes against humanity or even genocide.
To preserve cultural heritage among the diaspora population, the ETAA was founded in 1992 to support the growing Uyghur community in Australia.
What is Uyghur food?
Uyghur cuisine offers a rich blend of flavours that reflect Central Asian, Turkish, and Chinese influences. It is characterised by its unique geographical position along the Silk Road, an ancient network of trade routes connecting China with the Mediterranean.
Lamb is central to Uyghur dishes, often seasoned with bold spices like cumin and pepper, reflecting Islamic dietary customs that avoid pork, which conversely is a staple in more mainstream Chinese food.
This has given rise to food like polo (a rice pilaf with carrots and meat), laghman (hand-pulled noodles topped with vegetables and lamb) and samsa, (dumplings filled with spiced lamb or beef).
My favourite Uyghur restaurants in Adelaide
A few of my favourites have shut down following the COVID-19 pandemic, however, a few remain.
Imperial Spices Uyghur Cuisine
6/1048 Grand Jct Rd, Holden Hill 5088
Imperial Spices is located in Holden Hill and does authentic Uyghur dishes.
Connoisseurs of casual eating, this one is for you. Their Gan Bian Chaw Mian is awesome, consisting of dry stir-fried handmade quarters-length noodles with chilli, chives and lamb or chicken.
Silk Road Uyghur Cuisine
29 Austin Street, Adelaide 5000
Silk Road Uyghur Cuisine in the CBD is revered for its comprehensive Uyghur menu.
Their dishes integrate Chinese-style noodles with Uyghur cuisine like Tokhu Qordak, which is stir-fried spicy boneless chicken pieces with potatoes and capsicum, served with spicy broth on hand-pulled flat noodles.
Urumqi Uyghur Cuisine
3/31-39 Gouger St, Adelaide SA 5000
It's just classic Uyghur grill food on Gouger Street. Go for grilled lamb over coals washed down with a glass of Ayran (sweet yoghurt drink).
Simple and sorted.
Tarim Uyghur Restaurant SA
4/68 Reservoir Rd, Modbury SA 5092
With servings of this size, it’s well worth the drive to Modbury—Uyghur hospitality at its finest.
Experience the best of Uyghur staples in surplus servings.
This is a community favourite, with plenty of praise in reviews. You won’t find a website, so just rock up and get ready to be rolled out.