Dairy food was long absent from the Han Chinese diet until Western culture flooded in. Cheese was virtually unknown.

Cheese (nai lao 奶酪) and yogurt (suan nai 酸奶) have been common for thousands of years among ethnic nomadic herding people in border regions, but these people historically were regarded as barbarians by ancient Han Chinese. Cheese was associated with barbarian cultures and, hence, avoided.

In addition, Chinese tend to avoid uncooked foods and some people find the smell of cheese unpleasant. Further, there was and still is a high proportion of lactose-intolerance among Han Chinese.

Today both imported and domestic cheeses are increasingly popular. Western types also are produced in China.

But Chinese cheese is distinctive; some can be chewed for hours like gum.

Glutinous rice wine can be added to milk in making pudding-like cheese. Cheese can be grilled, deep-fried, served with chili and or dipped in tea. It can be shaped into knots.

Typically cheese is produced in herding areas in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, the Tibet Autonomous Region, and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region - all areas where ethnic minorities predominate.

Chinese cheese is made from milk of cows, sheep, goats, yaks, camels and mares. It can be hard, semi-hard or soft like tofu. Milk is also made into yogurt and tofu-like desserts, It also can be fermented into a tasty beverage.

Some of the most popular Tibetan cheeses are made from the milk of yaks that live at high elevations. Churakampo, for example, is a hard, dry cheese made from yak buttermilk, to which butter and sugar are added. It's very rich and can be chewed for a couple of hours like chewing gum.

"At first a bit of cheese like a small stone in your mouth, but it eventually softens after an hour or two," says Li Huai, a travel blogger.

In south China, cheese is made by the cattle-raising Bai people in Yunnan Province and by Han Chinese in Foshan, Guangdong province.

Cheeses made in northern China generally have a heavy, rich flavor. Those from the south are milker and have some similarities with Italian cheeses.

Milk tofu (奶豆腐)

This cow-milk cheese (nai doufu) comes from Inner Mongolia. Its appearance and texture are similar to that of tofu, but it's firmer than tofu.

Raw milk, usually colostrum, is coagulated, fermented and formed into blocks.

Herdsman sometimes soaks the cheese in tea, serves it with fried millet and braised mutton.

It can also be dried. It's a staple food.

Flavor and texture changes when it is cut into different sizes.

Thick slices are soft, milky, slightly sweet and sour; think slices taste sweeter and melt in the mouth.

Milk tofu dries soon and turns hard.

Before eating, it is often steamed or grilled.

Dried milk tofu is available at Taobao.com. Those who want fresh cheese should visit Inner Mongolia.

Mozzarella of the East

Ru shan (乳扇), in Chinese, means milk fan, referring to the shape of a fan. It is cow milk cheese made in the grasslands of Yunnan by the Bai people in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture. The Bai are one of China's 56 ethnic groups.

The shiny white cheese is chewy and pliable. To make it, fresh cow milk is warmed in a wok, then suan jiang (酸浆), a local sour liquid used for curdling, is added. Curds are then removed, worked with the fingers and finally stretched over a bamboo frame to dry.

Many locals eat it raw, with sugar and some people say it tastes like mozzarella, but with a leathery texture.

Some people prefer to grill or deep-fry the cheese and serve it hot.

"Ru shan, after being deep-fried, turns golden and has layers of texture," says food critic Shu Qiao. "The outside is airy and crispy, while the inside is soft and chewy. If it is grilled and served with rose paste, it has a rich milky flavor with pleasing notes of caramel."

Yunnan also serves ru shan with chilies.

Some Yunnan restaurants in Shanghai serve authentic fried ru shan. If you like it raw, then it's best to go to Dali in Yunnan.