'SCAPE: Steppes to a new life
THE North West is dairy country and Australians are among the world’s biggest consumers of cow’s milk —but offer the average Aussie a swig of the national drink of Mongolia and see their face curdle into a squeamish look of ‘‘can I do it?’’
‘‘It’s better than wine for me,’’ says the diminutive 45-year-old woman sitting daintily in the middle of a dusty pile of builder’s mess in her soon-to-be-finished new enterprise in Devonport.
Jackie Norovsambuu is from Mongolia, a nation of traditional nomadic herdsmen renowned for being amiable and hospital people.
The vivacious Jackie proves it to be true. Her charm washes over a guest like a warm blanket.
Unfortunately the recent headlines and the furore are raging elsewhere over horsemeat being used instead of beef and appearing in food products where it shouldn’t on European shelves —and even in some Ikea meatballs.
And given the fact that Jackie is opening an Asian restaurant in Devonport, it is quite understandable to see her balk a little and grimace slightly at being asked to talk about horsemeat, one of the staples of her childhood diet.
Fermented mare’s milk (airag) is the national drink in Mongolia and is consumed like beer is drunk in Australia, although airag is less alcoholic with about a 2.5 per cent alcohol content.
It will still give you a kick, Jackie says cheekily and grins.
To outsiders, airag can be an acquired taste but three million Mongols happily knock it back and return for more.
‘‘Don’t say horsemeat or no one will come to the restaurant —you better make sure people know I’m not serving it here,’’ Jackie says. Her laugh is a pleasant musical sound.
Mongols love music and to dance.
‘‘I ate horsemeat regularly growing up because it’s part of our culture and our food but I’m not going to cook it here.’’
She said it had ‘‘a strong beefy flavour’’ and was not her favourite meal.
She prefers the Mongolian dumplings which are a typical dish and delicious.
Buuz dumplings are commonly eaten steamed. They have a ground meat filling flavoured with garlic, onions and caraway seeds.
Jackie said it was necessary to stock up on meat supplies and store it to see the family through the harsh Mongolian winters where temperatures could drop to minus 40 degrees.
The Mongol diet is determined by the country’s tough climate and nomadic lifestyle in the steppes and is heavy in meat and dairy as few vegetables grow in the conditions.
‘‘Because of the climate, Mongolians eat a lot of dairy, hard vegetables like potatoes, carrots and cabbage and meat like mutton and beef— and sometimes horse and yak,’’ says Jackie.
She laughs again when she is asked if she has ever milked a horse.
‘‘I never used to get the horse milk — I was too scared —but my sister was very good and she did,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘You get the milk in a very heavy bag made from cow skin and then you ferment it for a long time.
‘‘It’s beautiful— better than wine for me. It is really good.’’
Mongols are born to the saddle and are skilled riders from a young age.
They tend to have many horses which are very important to them.
The nation loves horse racing and no festival is complete without a fiercely contested horse race where the dust flies.
‘‘Mainly we have sheep for meat, cows for cheese and milk, and the horses for transportation and racing,’’ says Jackie.
In Mongolia, Jackie’s family lives in a ger, the traditional portable tent many Mongolian families live in.
Increasingly more tourists are choosing the isolated country to stay in gers and experience the lifestyle.
Jackie’s home town is Zuunmod, a very small town in Mongolia’s Central Province not far (43 kilometres) from the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
According to Wikipedia, in 2004, Zuunmod had about 24,000 head of livestock, among them 8500 goats, 12,000 sheep, 2000 cattle and about as many horses and is typical of provincial Mongolia.
Jackie’s father was a truck driver and her mother was a school teacher.
‘‘A very good teacher,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘I was the one who used to go with my dad all over the Mongolian countryside.
‘‘I was like his apprentice and we had a lot of good times and changed lots of tyres.’’ She chuckles at fond memories.
With both parents working, Jackie said she would sometimes cook the family meals and learnt from her parents.
She trained to be a surgical nurse but after her mother’s death from cancer, Jackie found she no longer wanted to do nursing.
‘‘I couldn’t help my mum and my thinking was it was better for me to do something else,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘I am always ready to take a risk.
‘‘My life has been full of challenge and I’m always ready to take up the challenge against the odds.
‘‘You can’t complain. ‘‘And wait and hope for the best.
‘‘I realise I can think of something I really want to do.’’
It’s an attitude Jackie says she gets from her parents and it is how she was raised. Jackie opened a small takeaway shop.
She moved to the Mongolian capital and began to make trips to Beijing in China, just 36 hours’ travel by train.
Mongolia was in a period of flux and great change after the fall of the communist regime.
‘‘When the socialist regime changed to democratic, many people lost jobs and salaries went right down,’’ Jackie said.
‘‘It was a huge moment and caused upheaval and we all lost the plot a bit (as a nation).
‘‘Before the regime change, things were organised in a certain way and after it was changed, you suddenly had to do it for yourself.
‘‘People were just looking for a way to make a living.
‘‘It was really uncertain because you don’t know what the future is going to be like and you are scared because you are not sure what tomorrow will bring, or when you are going to work next.’’
The first time she went to Beijing the frenetic pace and vast population rushing about in the bustling city was overwhelming.
‘‘It was a huge culture clash for me,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘Mongolia is still a traditional lifestyle and I wanted to go to Beijing to see what it was like because I was very interested in working in tourism.
‘‘But I never thought I could live in such a city.’’
Mongolia is becoming a popular tourist destination for the unique experience it offers people and for the way the Mongolian people take pride in their customs and traditional habits.
‘‘The countryside is very open and very beautiful in Mongolia,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘The Tibetan culture is rich and colourful and there are a lot of beautiful tents where visitors can stay— and the Mongolian people are beautiful people.’’
Jackie’s chance meeting with her Australian partner was at a party in a cafe in Beijing.
He was working in China.
‘‘I had never considered I would ever be living in Australia,’’ Jackie says and she is still a bit incredulous about where she has ended up but is totally embracing her new life and home.
‘‘I had no idea about Australia and I couldn’t speak English.
‘‘In Mongolia I did a three-month course in English before we moved to Canberra.
‘‘It was a very good course but I was a very bad student.’’ She laughs
Jackie managed to pick up the language while living here but not without the funny episodes where things were lost in translation.
The couple and Jackie’s teenage daughter lived in Vietnam for three years before the trio moved from Canberra to Hobart and then came to Ulverstone three years ago.
Jackie’s partner works for a North-West politician.
Daughter Anooka, 17, attends the Don College.
In Hobart, Jackie found part-time work at a large hotel and studied at Drysdale College, where despite her language difficulties, she managed to graduate top of her class.
‘‘I love to learn and I will never give up learning,’’ she says.
‘‘I am studying business and finance in Burnie.’’
She hated not doing anything when she was unable to find work after moving to the Coast.
With what she calls her ‘‘can-do attitude’’ coming to the fore, she decided to open Little Asia in Devonport’s Rooke Street where she loves seeing the Spirit of Tasmania ferries arriving and leaving.
‘‘It’s like the symbol of my new home,’’ she says.
Jackie is a social person and is often homesick for her family in Magnolia.
‘‘This is my home now and it is beautiful but I still have strong ties with Mongolia,’’ she says.
‘‘At home at Ulverstone I see people arriving at my neighbours’ and I am wishing people are arriving at my house too.
‘‘Because I have been living in different countries and because of my culture I felt that what I can offer to North-West Tasmania is a taste of my culture and my food.
‘‘When I lived in other places I picked up how to cook the food.
‘‘In Vietnam, we had an Asian ladies’ group which met every Wednesday and we got together to share our food and taught each other how to make it.
‘‘I learnt Vietnamese cooking and Thai and Korean and some Japanese.
‘‘I have a lot of ideas in my head about what I feel I can offer —maybe call it confusion cooking.
‘‘I’m going to cook Mongolian and Asian and lots of dumplings.
‘‘I always wish I could have someone to come and knock on my door and maybe I won’t feel that alone.’’
Little Asia is at 153 Rooke Street, Devonport.
‘‘It’s better than wine for me,’’ says the diminutive 45-year-old woman sitting daintily in the middle of a dusty pile of builder’s mess in her soon-to-be-finished new enterprise in Devonport.
Jackie Norovsambuu is from Mongolia, a nation of traditional nomadic herdsmen renowned for being amiable and hospital people.
The vivacious Jackie proves it to be true. Her charm washes over a guest like a warm blanket.
Unfortunately the recent headlines and the furore are raging elsewhere over horsemeat being used instead of beef and appearing in food products where it shouldn’t on European shelves —and even in some Ikea meatballs.
And given the fact that Jackie is opening an Asian restaurant in Devonport, it is quite understandable to see her balk a little and grimace slightly at being asked to talk about horsemeat, one of the staples of her childhood diet.
Fermented mare’s milk (airag) is the national drink in Mongolia and is consumed like beer is drunk in Australia, although airag is less alcoholic with about a 2.5 per cent alcohol content.
It will still give you a kick, Jackie says cheekily and grins.
To outsiders, airag can be an acquired taste but three million Mongols happily knock it back and return for more.
‘‘Don’t say horsemeat or no one will come to the restaurant —you better make sure people know I’m not serving it here,’’ Jackie says. Her laugh is a pleasant musical sound.
Mongols love music and to dance.
‘‘I ate horsemeat regularly growing up because it’s part of our culture and our food but I’m not going to cook it here.’’
She said it had ‘‘a strong beefy flavour’’ and was not her favourite meal.
She prefers the Mongolian dumplings which are a typical dish and delicious.
Buuz dumplings are commonly eaten steamed. They have a ground meat filling flavoured with garlic, onions and caraway seeds.
Jackie said it was necessary to stock up on meat supplies and store it to see the family through the harsh Mongolian winters where temperatures could drop to minus 40 degrees.
The Mongol diet is determined by the country’s tough climate and nomadic lifestyle in the steppes and is heavy in meat and dairy as few vegetables grow in the conditions.
‘‘Because of the climate, Mongolians eat a lot of dairy, hard vegetables like potatoes, carrots and cabbage and meat like mutton and beef— and sometimes horse and yak,’’ says Jackie.
She laughs again when she is asked if she has ever milked a horse.
‘‘I never used to get the horse milk — I was too scared —but my sister was very good and she did,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘You get the milk in a very heavy bag made from cow skin and then you ferment it for a long time.
‘‘It’s beautiful— better than wine for me. It is really good.’’
Mongols are born to the saddle and are skilled riders from a young age.
They tend to have many horses which are very important to them.
The nation loves horse racing and no festival is complete without a fiercely contested horse race where the dust flies.
‘‘Mainly we have sheep for meat, cows for cheese and milk, and the horses for transportation and racing,’’ says Jackie.
In Mongolia, Jackie’s family lives in a ger, the traditional portable tent many Mongolian families live in.
Increasingly more tourists are choosing the isolated country to stay in gers and experience the lifestyle.
Jackie’s home town is Zuunmod, a very small town in Mongolia’s Central Province not far (43 kilometres) from the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
According to Wikipedia, in 2004, Zuunmod had about 24,000 head of livestock, among them 8500 goats, 12,000 sheep, 2000 cattle and about as many horses and is typical of provincial Mongolia.
Jackie’s father was a truck driver and her mother was a school teacher.
‘‘A very good teacher,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘I was the one who used to go with my dad all over the Mongolian countryside.
‘‘I was like his apprentice and we had a lot of good times and changed lots of tyres.’’ She chuckles at fond memories.
With both parents working, Jackie said she would sometimes cook the family meals and learnt from her parents.
She trained to be a surgical nurse but after her mother’s death from cancer, Jackie found she no longer wanted to do nursing.
‘‘I couldn’t help my mum and my thinking was it was better for me to do something else,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘I am always ready to take a risk.
‘‘My life has been full of challenge and I’m always ready to take up the challenge against the odds.
‘‘You can’t complain. ‘‘And wait and hope for the best.
‘‘I realise I can think of something I really want to do.’’
It’s an attitude Jackie says she gets from her parents and it is how she was raised. Jackie opened a small takeaway shop.
She moved to the Mongolian capital and began to make trips to Beijing in China, just 36 hours’ travel by train.
Mongolia was in a period of flux and great change after the fall of the communist regime.
‘‘When the socialist regime changed to democratic, many people lost jobs and salaries went right down,’’ Jackie said.
‘‘It was a huge moment and caused upheaval and we all lost the plot a bit (as a nation).
‘‘Before the regime change, things were organised in a certain way and after it was changed, you suddenly had to do it for yourself.
‘‘People were just looking for a way to make a living.
‘‘It was really uncertain because you don’t know what the future is going to be like and you are scared because you are not sure what tomorrow will bring, or when you are going to work next.’’
The first time she went to Beijing the frenetic pace and vast population rushing about in the bustling city was overwhelming.
‘‘It was a huge culture clash for me,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘Mongolia is still a traditional lifestyle and I wanted to go to Beijing to see what it was like because I was very interested in working in tourism.
‘‘But I never thought I could live in such a city.’’
Mongolia is becoming a popular tourist destination for the unique experience it offers people and for the way the Mongolian people take pride in their customs and traditional habits.
‘‘The countryside is very open and very beautiful in Mongolia,’’ Jackie says.
‘‘The Tibetan culture is rich and colourful and there are a lot of beautiful tents where visitors can stay— and the Mongolian people are beautiful people.’’
Jackie’s chance meeting with her Australian partner was at a party in a cafe in Beijing.
He was working in China.
‘‘I had never considered I would ever be living in Australia,’’ Jackie says and she is still a bit incredulous about where she has ended up but is totally embracing her new life and home.
‘‘I had no idea about Australia and I couldn’t speak English.
‘‘In Mongolia I did a three-month course in English before we moved to Canberra.
‘‘It was a very good course but I was a very bad student.’’ She laughs
Jackie managed to pick up the language while living here but not without the funny episodes where things were lost in translation.
The couple and Jackie’s teenage daughter lived in Vietnam for three years before the trio moved from Canberra to Hobart and then came to Ulverstone three years ago.
Jackie’s partner works for a North-West politician.
Daughter Anooka, 17, attends the Don College.
In Hobart, Jackie found part-time work at a large hotel and studied at Drysdale College, where despite her language difficulties, she managed to graduate top of her class.
‘‘I love to learn and I will never give up learning,’’ she says.
‘‘I am studying business and finance in Burnie.’’
She hated not doing anything when she was unable to find work after moving to the Coast.
With what she calls her ‘‘can-do attitude’’ coming to the fore, she decided to open Little Asia in Devonport’s Rooke Street where she loves seeing the Spirit of Tasmania ferries arriving and leaving.
‘‘It’s like the symbol of my new home,’’ she says.
Jackie is a social person and is often homesick for her family in Magnolia.
‘‘This is my home now and it is beautiful but I still have strong ties with Mongolia,’’ she says.
‘‘At home at Ulverstone I see people arriving at my neighbours’ and I am wishing people are arriving at my house too.
‘‘Because I have been living in different countries and because of my culture I felt that what I can offer to North-West Tasmania is a taste of my culture and my food.
‘‘When I lived in other places I picked up how to cook the food.
‘‘In Vietnam, we had an Asian ladies’ group which met every Wednesday and we got together to share our food and taught each other how to make it.
‘‘I learnt Vietnamese cooking and Thai and Korean and some Japanese.
‘‘I have a lot of ideas in my head about what I feel I can offer —maybe call it confusion cooking.
‘‘I’m going to cook Mongolian and Asian and lots of dumplings.
‘‘I always wish I could have someone to come and knock on my door and maybe I won’t feel that alone.’’
Little Asia is at 153 Rooke Street, Devonport.
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