Food Encyclopedia

Mongolian grill

This audience-participation cooking is said to have originated during the time of Genghis Khan when his warriors in the field would sit around grills and enjoy cooking their own food. The basic approach is for each diner to dip thin slices of lamb (or other meat) into a ginger-soy sauce marinade before placing them on a hot grill (usually a large hibachi) set on the center of the table. Each individual cooks his or her meat (the Mongolian grill) according to personal preference. The grill is sometimes garnished with chopped scallions, mushrooms or watercress and eaten on plain buns.