P
Indian
Nepali Momos: Himalayan Dumplings
Momos — the Himalayan steamed dumplings of Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, and Sikkim — are the meeting point of Chinese jiaozi (gyoza, TJ-55), Indian spice vocabulary, and the specific ingredients of the Himalayan region. They are Nepal's most widely eaten street food and a preparation that varies dramatically by filling (buffalo, pork, chicken, vegetables) and by dipping sauce (tomato-sesame or the Nepali chilli-garlic achar).
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I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
For the wrapper
300 g
plain wheat flour
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
150 ml
water
Your own market
1 tsp
neutral oil
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
For the filling
500 g
buffalo meat
minced very fine
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 medium
onion
minced very fine
Your own market
20 g
4 cloves
garlic
minced very fine
Your own market
1 tsp
ground cumin
Your own market
1 tsp
ground coriander
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tbsp
sesame oil
Your own market
1 tsp
salt
or to taste
Your own market
For the tomato-sesame achar
3 medium
3 tbsp
sesame seeds
dry-roasted
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2
dried red chillies
dry-roasted
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.
II
The Method
1
Combine the flour, water, and oil in a bowl and work to a smooth, cohesive dough. Add the oil so the dough stays supple and does not stiffen when rolled thin — a stiff dough will tear at the pleats. The dough is done when it yields to gentle pressure without springing back and shows no dry streaks.
2
Rest the dough, covered, while you prepare the filling, so the gluten relaxes and the dough rolls without resistance later. Combine the buffalo, onion, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, sesame oil, and salt, then work the mixture until entirely homogenous. The filling must be minced very fine throughout — any coarse fragment will tear the thin wrapper.
3
Divide the dough into portions of approximately 12 g each. Roll each portion into a thin round — thinner than a jiaozi wrapper — keeping the centre slightly thicker than the edge so the base holds the filling without splitting. The round is ready when it is translucent at its edges when held to light.
4
Place a measured amount of filling at the centre of each round. This is where the dish lives or dies: pleat the wrapper around the filling in one continuous pinching motion, gathering the dough upward and inward until the top is fully sealed, so no pocket of air is trapped inside to burst the wrapper under steam. The seal must be airtight — any gap will allow steam to breach the wrapper and the filling will escape during cooking.
5
Dry-roast the tomatoes, sesame seeds, and dried chillies separately in a heavy pan over direct heat, turning until each is darkened and fragrant, so each ingredient reaches its own point of caramelisation without one scorching before another has coloured. The tomatoes are done when their skins blister and char in patches; the sesame seeds when they colour to deep gold and give off a nutty smell; the chillies when they darken and become aromatic. Blend all three together to a smooth sauce.
6
Bring water to a vigorous boil beneath a bamboo steamer, so a strong, even head of steam surrounds the momos from the moment they go in and the wrappers set quickly without sticking. Arrange the momos in the steamer without touching and steam for 10–12 minutes. The momos are done when the wrapper is translucent throughout and the filling, pressed gently through the dough, has firmed completely.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Buffalo sourced from a Himalayan-breed animal, minced to order; hand-ground whole cumin and coriander toasted immediately before use; sesame oil cold-pressed; tomatoes for the achar vine-ripened and dry-roasted over charcoal.
02
Estate — Buffalo from a trusted butcher, minced very fine on request; whole spices ground fresh; good-quality toasted sesame oil; ripe tomatoes dry-roasted in a cast-iron pan.
03
Market — Pre-minced buffalo or pork (where buffalo is unavailable); pre-ground cumin and coriander; standard sesame oil; tinned whole tomatoes dry-roasted until reduced and coloured.
04
House — Minced chicken or firm tofu filling substituted for buffalo; pre-ground spices from a spice rack; supermarket sesame oil; bottled chilli-garlic sauce in place of achar.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Touch. The rested dough yields to gentle pressure without springing back and shows no dry streaks.
◇Sight. Each rolled round is translucent at its edges when held to light.
◇Smell. Dry-roasted sesame seeds colour to deep gold and emit a pronounced nutty aroma; tomatoes blister and char; chillies darken and become aromatic.
◇Sight. After 10–12 minutes of steaming, the wrapper is translucent throughout, with no remaining floury-white patches.
◇Touch. The filling, pressed gently through the cooked wrapper, has firmed and no longer feels soft or raw at the centre.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish lives or dies on the Nepali fold: the wrapper must be pleated around the filling in one continuous pinching motion and sealed without a single gap, or steam will breach it and the filling will be lost.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Bushmills Malt 10 Year Old
Old Bushmills Distillery · County Antrim — Bushmills Distillery
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Whisky
From British Columbia
SOV Wheated Rye Whisky
Sons of Vancouver Distillery · Metro Vancouver
Sons of Vancouver Distillery · North Vancouver →Whisky
Without alcohol
No pour without alcohol holds against this yet.
Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.
Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →
The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
Sourced through Provenance