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    The Indelible Experience of Namak Mandi Peshawar

    Written by: Yusra Hussain
    Posted on: March 02, 2021 |

    Dum Pukht and Mutton Karahi

    The old city of Peshawar is a treasure hiding gems of historical significance. As you begin exploring the city, you’ll soon uncover a place called Namak Mandi (The Salt Market). According to an old dweller of Peshawar city, this place was once a center for salt trade in the region. In the pre-partition era – when the city looked deserted and the sound of a horse’s hoofs dragging a tonga could be heard at the last stretch of the road due to the lingering quietness – the salt traders used to have their stacks of salt preserved in the go-downs of Namak Mandi. People, majorly from neighboring countries, would come here and barter this salt with a variety of everyday commodities. Over the years, this business diminished, but the place has retained the name that it earned recognition from decades ago.

    Namak Mandi is now saturated with medicine markets, tandoors, and even banks and general stores, but the larger part of the Mandi is dominated by restaurants, whose cooks can easily pass as connoisseurs of food, particularly meat dishes.

    The dry fruit market

    The dry fruit market

    At one end of the Namak Mandi are its dry fruit shops. The shopkeepers can be found sunk amidst mounds of dry fruits stacked and displayed neatly in an uphill sloping fashion. Packed or loose, these shops sell an assortment of dry fruits – almonds, raisins, walnuts, cashew nuts, peanuts, pine nuts, dried coconuts, pistachios, dried figs, roasted gram, dates, dried apricots – you name it. Many passersby are seen using the gesture of salam as they traverse these shops, occasionally stopping and popping a peanut in their mouth from one of the arranged stacks. It’s a place filled with the noises of a living city: the clattering of spoons against woks, the opening and closing of pot lids, honking cars, little kids shouting and running after each other with grocery bags in their hands, rickshaws starting their engines, and the occasional blaring sounds of a pushto song coming from a tikka shop.

    Namak Mandi is bright and luminous, with bulbs dangling over every shop and multi-colored fairy lights creeping over the signage to attract clientele. Inside the open restaurants, you’ll see waiters with a cloth on their shoulders, dexterously holding the plates of salad, naan and meat delicacies, and memorizing long lists of customers’ orders. Not long ago, some of the restaurants had charpoys set outside, with tables between them. Customers would get cozy in the charpoys, rest their backs against a bolster, and enjoy their freshly served meal. With the passage of time, the charpoys and bolsters have been replaced with plastic and wooden chairs, but fortunately the authentic taste of the food remains intact.

    Most restaurants have a vast menu that includes sajji, kabab, dum pukht and a variety of meat-heavy dishes, but the two main items that have earned Namak Mandi its repute are tikkay and karahi. Displayed on the outside are hanging, skinned whole lambs, goats, and chickens. These skinned animals are cut into smaller pieces on the spot, before being tossed into a wok or put on a skewer. There are workers who wait the tables and wash, cut, and peel the vegetables, but it is only the cook himself who mixes the meat with spices and maybe tosses in the secret ingredient while he’s at it.

    Namak Mandi Peshawar

    The cook vigorously fans the tikka on skewers, hidden behind white clouds of aromatic smoke from the barbecue grill. When you finally eat it, your fingers damp with the tender meat juices, you can tell that the meat has been expertly marinated, so much so that it becomes impossible to restrain yourself from ordering another batch. The mere sight of the karahi is likely to make your mouth water. And as your order is presented in front of you with the perfect condiments – mint chutney and the conventional salad – you’ll know you’re in for a finger-licking treat.

    Tikkay and Karahi remain Namak Mandi's most famous items

    Tikkay and Karahi remain Namak Mandi's most famous items

    From a meet-up between old friends or a quick bite in the lunch break, to a night out with family or relatives, this place has witnessed countless stories, echoing laughter, and passionate political discussions over a plate of karahi and tikkay. After spending some time pondering over what makes the Namak Mandi experience so exceptional, I reached one conclusion: the secret ingredient is not found inside the food; it lurks in the ambiance of this place, and thus can never be replicated.

    Bon appétit!


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021