A taste of Nepal

From buff momos to yak burgers, spicy noodle bhel, and savoury rice doughnuts, Nepal has much to offer to the food-loving traveller, writes Edwina D’souza

Nepalese thukpa

Momos

food

Khukri Rum

There is more to Nepal than just trekking expeditions and off-roading adventures. Food is an important part of Nepali culture. Its ingredients are influenced by geography and local communities, with some inspiration from Tibetan and Indian cuisine. Dal bhat is a national staple, but meats like chicken, lamb, buff, and yak are widely popular too; and the alcohol scene is quite strong. On a two-week backpacking trip across Nepal, I decided to explore what the country has to offer, one dish at a time!

Inside the Nepali Chulho

My first Nepali meal was dinner at Nepali Chulho, a traditional restaurant tucked in a quiet lane in Lazimpat in Kathmandu. They serve authentic Nepali and Newari fare, where diners also enjoy cultural performances like the Kumari and Sherpa dances. I tried the Thakali platter — a fusion cuisine inspired by the Himalayan and low-lying regions — that served peanut chaat, fried potatoes, a zesty chicken starter, and Nepali momos with a fiery chutney. For mains, there was kaali dal (lentils) with rice, a spicy wild boar preparation, and some chicken in local spices, nicely washed down with a shot of rice wine.

With love from Tibet

Over the next few days, I moved toward the far northern region of the Nepalese Himalayas. In Lo Manthang in the Upper Mustang province, at an altitude of 3840m, it snows for six months in the year. The remoteness of the region and inhospitable climate make it difficult to move goods and groceries. So the cuisine is made of ingredients that can be locally grown like barley, buckwheat, potatoes, sea buckthorn, yak milk, and yak meat.

Yet, it is not surprising to find crowd-pleasers like pizzas, pasta, and espressos — many consumer items come from the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, with the Kora La border just 20 km away. Lo Manthang’s cultural links to Tibet have a strong impact on its food. In the main town square of this walled city bustling with local eateries, I tried some excellent Shabalay (deep-fried roti with beef mince) served with hot chutney, some deep-fried sausage on sticks, and butter tea.

High altitude meal

In Samar, a village 50 kilometres South of Lo Manthang, I stayed at a Nepali homestay where dinner was dal bhat with aloo tarkari and saag (seasonal greens) homegrown in their backyard. But it was the Yak Sukuti (smoked dried yak meat with spices) that stole the show. The stark landscape here makes it essential to preserve meat like yak and buff by drying thin strips in the sun and storing them for consumption over longer durations, especially in winter months.

Yak Sukuti is an appetiser or bar snack best enjoyed with Khukri Rum or a shot of Rakshi (alcohol distilled from Kodo millet).

Further South, in Kagbeni, I stopped at a restaurant called Yac Donalds that serves — hold your breath — Yak burger happy meals. A local did a spinoff on the famous fast-food chain, and now this restaurant is a popular pitstop with tourists heading to Upper Mustang.

They serve yak cheeseburgers with fries and sea buckthorn juice extracted from berries that wildly grow in the region. The wheat for the buns is also locally sourced and ground in 15th-century water mills preserving its century-old traditions.

Marpha, 20 kilometres further South, is the apple garden of Nepal and a pitstop for trekkers heading to the base camp for the Dhaulagiri (the seventh-highest mountain in the world). I enjoyed walking through the narrow cobbled streets of this charming village, tasting apple brandy and cider along with roast chicken and veggies.

Celebrating street food

By the Kali Gandaki River, on an evening stroll in Tatopani, I stopped for a snack of Nepali chatpate, an addictive spicy bhel with WaiWai noodles, puffed rice, kala chana (chickpea), onions, tomatoes, lime, and spices. Every Nepali region has its version of chatpate. Locals enjoy this fiery snack as an evening tea-time delight or with a cold brew like Gorkha Strong or Barasinghe.

On the seventh day, I was back in Kathmandu — the gastronomic hub of Nepal — and wandered through its streets that celebrate iconic snacks like the Sel-roti, a Nepali-style deep-fried rice doughnut. These are traditionally eaten during the Hindu festivals of Tihar and Dashain, but are now increasingly popular as a street snack.

In the UNESCO town of Bhaktapur, my guide exchanged a quick word with a vendor in the Newari language and returned with a kulhad of Juju Dhau or King of Curds. This delicious yoghurt is known for its rich and creamy texture, prepared from buffalo milk in traditional clay pots.

Legend has it that in a yoghurt competition organised by the monarchs of the Malla era, Bhaktapur emerged as the winner over Kathmandu and Lalitpur, and hence was declared Juju Dhau or the King of Curds.

I spent the penultimate days of my trip in Bouddhanath — home to the largest stupa in Nepal and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Bouddha is the holiest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside Tibet, making it the centre of Tibetan culture in Kathmandu.

The food here heavily leans toward Tibetan and Chinese influences, and I tried some excellent buff momos, Thukpa (Noodle soup with meat, egg, and vegetables), and Laphing (cold and spicy flat noodles).

The grand finale of my gastronomic adventure was a wholesome Gorkhali lamb curry with rice at Boudha Boutique Hotel.

The meal summed up Nepal’s bountiful culinary delights, some improvised by climate and geographies, others through intermingling cultures, but all reflecting a labour of love.