Destination
Kathmandu
The story
Momo is the dumpling that defines Nepali food more than any other dish: small pleated pouches of thin wheat-flour dough wrapped around a filling of spiced minced buff (buffalo), chicken or vegetables, steamed in stacked bamboo baskets over a big steamer pot for 8 to 10 minutes, and served on a metal plate with a small dish of achar — the sesame-tomato dipping sauce that every Kathmandu momo counter makes its own version of. Sold at every neighbourhood shop, every roadside cart, every restaurant from Thamel to Patan, every family kitchen. There are more momo shops in Kathmandu than anywhere else on earth, and every Nepali has an opinion on which one makes the best.
Method
Whisk flour and salt in a large bowl. Add oil and half the warm water; mix with your hand, adding more water gradually until a soft, smooth dough forms. Knead 5 minutes on a lightly floured surface until elastic. Cover and rest 30 minutes.
Combine all filling ingredients in a bowl. Mix with your hand for 2 minutes so the spices fully coat the meat. The filling should be wet but hold together on a spoon.
Toast the sesame seeds and fenugreek in a dry pan over medium heat 3 minutes until pale gold and fragrant.
Char the tomatoes, dried chilies, garlic and ginger on a dry pan 6 minutes until blackened in patches. Blend with the toasted sesame, fenugreek, oil, salt, Timur and 100ml water to a smooth paste. Warm in a small pan 5 minutes to marry. Stir in lime and coriander off the heat.
Divide the dough into 4 balls. On a floured surface, roll one ball into a long log 3cm wide. Slice into 12 pieces (walnut-sized). Roll each piece with a small rolling pin into a thin round disc 8cm across, keeping the middle slightly thicker than the edges. Cover finished discs with a damp towel.
Hold a disc in your left palm. Place 1 tbsp filling in the middle. With your right thumb and index finger, make small pleats around the edge, working around the circle. Gather all pleats at the top into a single point. Pinch to seal — the finished momo should look like a small pouch with 15-20 pleats meeting at the top. Repeat.
Set up a bamboo steamer over a wok of simmering water (line each basket with a piece of oiled baking paper or lettuce leaves). Arrange momos with 1cm between each. Steam over medium-high heat 10 minutes until the wrappers are translucent-glossy and the meat feels firm to the touch. Work in batches.
Set 6 to 8 hot momos on each plate. Spoon a generous puddle of achar alongside. Scatter with coriander, sliced onion and a lime wedge. Eaters dip each momo in achar and eat with fingers. Any extra momos can be pan-fried the next day into kothey (fried) momos.
Tips
- Wet filling, not dry. A juicy filling gives you the classical burst-of-broth-in-your-mouth first bite. Dry filling makes a stodgy momo.
- Practice the pleats. The first 5 momos will be ugly. By the 20th you'll be pleating cleanly. It's a wrist-and-finger technique that clicks after a dozen attempts.
- Line the steamer. Bamboo steamer baskets soak up filling if not lined. Oiled baking paper with holes cut, cabbage leaves, or lettuce leaves all work.
- Timur is the flavour marker. Nepali Sichuan pepper is what makes momo achar taste specifically Nepali (not Indian, not Tibetan). Any Nepali or Asian grocer stocks it; black pepper is a poor substitute.
- The achar is half the dish. Every Nepali momo shop is judged on its achar. Make it fresh — it holds 2 days in the fridge but is best on the day.
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