Mutton, finger-served, instant-boiled, grilled, or roasted whole, is the dominant ingredient for dishes prepared in traditional Mongolian cuisine. The region also has a full line of dairy products to offer, including skin of boiled milk, yoghurt, cheese, butter, and buttered tea. Oat and buckwheat are chief raw materials for traditional staple food.

Souvenirs
There is a dazzling line of famous and special products in Inner Mongolia. Among local delicacies are ox penises, hedgehog hydnum, flagella form nostoc, and fern. Famous spirits include "Ningcheng Laojiao", "Chifeng Chenqu", "Mongolian King", "Wanshan Likou", and "Hongmao". Precious traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, such as membranous milk vetch, large-flowered skullcap, herbaceous peony, and Chinese ephedra, are produced in massive quantities in the region. Local arts and crafts include Mongolian knives, silver bowls, multihued Balin stone, tapestries, sheep fur cushions, and cashmere sweaters produced in the Erdos Grassland.