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Momo (food)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Apocheir (talk | contribs) at 21:24, 20 September 2023 (ce, there's no consensus on whether the plural of momo is momo or momos, but using "is" for the plural is definitely wrong). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Momo
A typical serving of a plate of momo with sesame yellow sauce and red ginger chilli pickle
Alternative namesམོག་མོག, म:म:
Place of originTibet, Nepal
Associated cuisineTibetan cuisine, Nepali cuisine
Main ingredientsWhite-flour-and-water dough; meat, vegetable
VariationsSteam-momo, Kothey momo, Jhol momo, C-momo, Fry-momo, Open-momo, fried momo, chicken-momo, veg-momo, buff-momo, cheese-momo, khuwa-momo, chocolate-momo
Food energy
(per serving)
350 to 1000 (35 to 100 per piece) kcal
Similar dishesjiaozi, guotie, xiaolongbao, baozi, mantou, buuz, gyoza, mandu, manti

Momos are a type of steamed filled dumpling in Tibetan[1] and Nepali cuisine[2] that is also popular in neighbouring Bhutan and India.[3][4] Momos are usually served with a sauce known as achar influenced by the spices and herbs used within many South Asian cuisines.[5] It can also be cooked as soup versions known as jhol momo where the broth is made from achar using a mixture of tomatoes, sesame seeds, chillies, cumin and coriander or mokthuk from boiling pork/buffalo bones mixed with various herbs and vegetables.[6][7]

Origin

"Momo" is the colloquial form of the Tibetan word "mog mog".[8] It is possible that this Tibetan word is borrowed from the Chinese term momo (馍馍), a name traditionally used in northwestern Chinese dialects for wheat steamed buns and bread.[9] The word mo (馍) itself means wheat flour food products or mantou (馒头), steamed buns.[10] Historically, Chinese names for steamed buns did not distringuish between those with or without fillings until the term baozi (包子) emerged during the Song Dynasty between the tenth and thirteenth century.[11] However, in eastern regions of China such as Jiangsu and Shanghai, mantou continues to carry both meanings in modern day.[12] In the Nepal Bhasa language, the word mome (मम) means cooking by steaming. The history of momo in Nepal dates back to as early as the fourteenth century.[13]

As for the Himalayan momo, it is not quite known whether it spread from the Kathmandu valley of Nepal to Tibet or the other way around. Because this dish was initially popular among the Newar community of the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal, one prevalent belief is that traveling Nepali Newar merchants took the recipe from Tibet, where they traded, and brought it home to Nepal.[14] Some argue that momo was introduced in Tibet by a Nepalese Newari princess who was married to a Tibetan king in the late fifteenth century, since in Newari, one of Nepal's oldest languages, ‘mome’ means cooking by steaming.[13] In Tibet, the filling of the dish was typically meat, such as yak and occasionally potatoes and cheese. Traditional Tibetan momos are quite different from the Nepalese one as the former was made with a thicker dough and with little to no spices except salt. However, after arriving in the Indo-Gangetic Plains, the meat became chicken, and mixed vegetables momo was introduced to feed the large population of vegetarian Hindus.[15] A large number of Tibetans emigrated to India following the 1959 Tibetan uprising, bringing their recipes for momos with them.[3] Unproven, but substantiated by the dates and references to momo in colloquial references, the civil war in Nepal pushed out the Nepali diaspora to seek a livelihood in India, which further increased the prevalence of Himalayan style momo in the southern half of India especially in the cities of Chennai and Bangalore.

Momo are common in Gilgit region in Ladakh

Production

A plate of momo from Nepal
A Tibetan woman making momo in Washington, D.C., United States

A simple white-flour-and-water dough is generally preferred to make the outer momo covering. Sometimes, a little yeast or baking soda is added to give a more doughy texture to the finished product.

Traditionally, momos are prepared with ground/minced meat, potatoes, and leek filling. Nowadays, the fillings have become more elaborate and momos are prepared with virtually any combination of ground meat, vegetables, tofu, mushrooms, paneer cheese, soft chhurpi (local hard cheese) and vegetable and meat combinations.

The dough is rolled into small circular flat pieces. The filling is enclosed in the circular dough cover either in a round pocket or a half-moon or crescent shape. People prefer meat with a lot of fat because it produces flavourful, juicy momos. A little oil is sometimes added to the lean ground/minced meat to keep the filling moist and juicy. The dumplings are then cooked by steaming over a soup (either a stock based on bones or vegetables) in a momo-making utensil called mucktoo. Momos may also be pan-fried or deep-fried after being steamed.

Variations

Momos are traditionally steamed but can also be deep-fried or pan-fried and cooked in soup. It is usually served with chilli garlic sauce and pickled daikon in Tibet. In Nepal, popular dipping sauces include tomato-based chutneys or sesame or peanut or soybean-based sauces called achar. Sauces can be thick or thin in consistency depending on the eatery.[17] Momos may be used in soups, such as jhol momo from Kathmandu,[6] or mokthuk from Tibet.[18]

Other variations of momos include:

  • C-momo, steamed or fried then served in chili sauce.[19][20]
  • Dhapu momo or Tibetan momo, typically larger and flatter than other versions of momos.[21]
  • Gong'a momo, a wheat and egg fried dough dumpling filled with meat paste.[22]
  • Green momo, a steamed vegetarian dumpling stuffed with vegetables, cabbage and green beans.[19]
  • Hoentay is a Bhutanese dumpling made from buckwheat dough wrapper mixed with spinach and cheese.[23]
  • Kothey momo is a pan-fried version of momo. The dumpling is first filled with meat as well as vegetables and spices. It is first steamed then fried and then served in dipping sauce.
  • Open momo is another Nepalese addition to the variant in that it has a distinct shape which has open holes on the top that can be used to add various sauces and spices.[24]
  • Sadheko momo, a momo salad with onions and tomatoes, herbs, and spices.[25][26][27]
  • Shogo momo is a Tibetan variant that is prepared using mashed potato with dough, shaped into balls, with a minced meat filling, served with bread crumbs.[28]
  • Tingmo is a type of steamed bread made from flour, yeast and water. Tingmo is a soft and fluffy bread served with savoury dishes such as stews or curries. Unlike other versions of momos, Tingmo does not contain any type of filling.[29]
  • Xab momo, a Tibetan dumpling stuffed with beef or mutton.[22]
  • Momo in a mucktoo in Kathmandu, Nepal
    Momo in a mucktoo in Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Kothey, a pan-fried momo variety from "The Bakery Cafe" in Nepal
    Kothey, a pan-fried momo variety from "The Bakery Cafe" in Nepal

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Momos.
Wikibooks Cookbook has a recipe/module on
  1. ^ Kleeman, Julie; Jampa, Yeshi. Taste Tibet: Family recipes from the Himalayas. Murdoch Books. ISBN 9781911668428. Archived from the original on 2023-05-05. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  2. ^ Shah, Santosh. Ayla: A Feast of Nepali Dishes from Terai, Hills and the Himalayas. DK. ISBN 9780241535776. Archived from the original on 2023-05-05. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  3. ^ a b Pushkarna, Kritika (2021-11-23). "The Interesting Story Of How Momos Came To India". TIMESOFINDIA.COM. Archived from the original on 12 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  4. ^ "Time For A Momo-gasm! The 6 Ultimate Places Serving The BEST Indian Momos". Archived from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  5. ^ Chef. "Momo – What is a Momo? (Food)". World Travel Chef. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Anup's Kitchen | Traditional recipes, without shortcuts". July 8, 2016. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  7. ^ MyRecipes. "Tibetan mokthuk; Easy Dumpling recipe; Soup dumplings; momo recipe; hot and Sour dumpling". Vegan High Protein. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  8. ^ Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae. Akadémiai Kiadó. 1955. p. 209.
  9. ^ "馍馍的做法_馍馍怎么做_菜谱_美食天下". Archived from the original on 2022-07-17. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  10. ^ https://www.zdic.net/hans/%E9%A6%8D Archived 2022-07-17 at the Wayback Machine 面制食品 food related to flour
  11. ^ 王栐《燕翼冶谋录》“仁宗诞日，赐群臣包子。”包子下注“即馒头别名。”、“今俗屑发酵，或有馅，或无馅，蒸食之者，都谓之馒头。” Available at https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hans/%E7%87%95%E7%BF%BC%E8%A9%92%E8%AC%80%E9%8C%84 Archived 2023-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ "菜包占比超过肉馒头 苏州人吃包子口味紧跟时尚_我苏网". www.ourjiangsu.com. Archived from the original on 2023-06-17. Retrieved 2023-06-17.
  13. ^ a b "The history of MOMO (The king of fast food-Dumpling)". Archived from the original on 2023-01-21. Retrieved 2023-01-16.[better source needed]
  14. ^ Sijapati, Alisha (September 17, 2016). "A Juicy Love Affair". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  15. ^ Seow, Lynelle (15 January 2017). CultureShock! India. Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd. pp. 202–. ISBN 978-981-4771-98-6.
  16. ^ "Momo recipe". Himalayanlearning.org. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved April 6, 2011.
  17. ^ Williams, James. "Momos Chutney Recipe". Recipickr.com. Archived from the original on 2016-11-08. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  18. ^ Lama, Tsering Ngodup. "An essential guide to thukpas". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  19. ^ a b HoneyGuide Staff. "12 Varieties of Momo - Have you tried them all?". HoneyGuide. Archived from the original on 2023-04-24. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  20. ^ Bishal (2019-05-22). "How to cook Nepali Style C-Momo (Chilli Momo) in 10 Minutes? C-MOMO Recipe". ReaderSpice. Archived from the original on 2023-05-07. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  21. ^ "Top 15 momos that will surely tempt your taste buds!". BuddyMantra. Archived from the original on 2023-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  22. ^ a b Li, Tao, Jiang (2003). Tibetan Customs. 五洲传播出版社. p. 37. ISBN 978-7-5085-0254-0. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  23. ^ Migrationology. "Bhutanese Food: 25 Best Dishes To Eat When You're In Bhutan!". Migrationology. Archived from the original on 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  24. ^ "How To Make Authentic Open Momo Recipe In 20 Min". Bakaasur. Archived from the original on 2023-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  25. ^ "Sandheko Momo". momo king. Archived from the original on 2023-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  26. ^ Jeena (2023-06-08). "Sadeko Momo Recipe (Spicy Momo Salad Nepali Style)". Archived from the original on 2023-07-22. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  27. ^ "Momos: Scrumptious Delights". nepaltraveller.com. Archived from the original on 2023-05-08. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  28. ^ Himalayan Dumplings. "Tibetan Shogo Momo (Fluffy Potato Dumplings)". feedfeed. Archived from the original on 2023-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  29. ^ Lonely Planet India - Sarina Singh. p. 377.
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