汉代以前,敦煌地区一直是西北少数民族的游牧之地,西汉时期,这里聚居着匈奴等民族。西北少数民族以牧业及狩猎为主,肉类是他们的主要食品。汉代以来,移居河西地区的汉族及各少数民族一直喜欢肉食品,并保持了不少少数民族传统肉食品的制作方法。嘉峪关魏晋墓壁画中就有少数民族烤羊肉的生动画面。 Before the Han Dynasty, the Dunhuang area had always been a nomadic place for the northwest minorities. During the Western Han Dynasty, there lived a nation such as the Huns. Northwest Minorities mainly animal husbandry and hunting, meat is their main food. Since the Han Dynasty, the Han and other ethnic minorities who moved to Hexi Prefecture have always loved meat products and kept a lot of methods of making traditional meat products for ethnic minorities. Jiayuguan Wei and Jin tomb murals have a vivid picture of ethnic lamb roast.