Kwati (soup)
![]() A bowl of kwati | |
Alternative names | (Nepali: क्वाती) |
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Course | mixed soup |
Main ingredients | black gram, green gram, chickpea, field bean, soybean, field pea, garden pea, cowpea and rice bean |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Mixed_bean_kwati.jpg/220px-Mixed_bean_kwati.jpg)
Kwāti (Nepal Bhasa: क्वाँटी (where क्वाँ= hot and टी = soup); Nepali: क्वाँटी) is a mixed soup of nine types of sprouted beans. It is a traditional Nepalese dish consumed on the festival of Gun Punhi, the full moon day of Gunlā which is the tenth month in the Nepal Era lunar calendar. Kwāti is eaten as a delicacy and for its health benefits and ritual significance.[1][2]Kwati is known to be a healthy food. They say that it cures cold, cough and is one of the best foods for women in their maternity leave. Since, it contains varieties of beans, this recipe is loaded with proteins and thus helps weak/sick people to regain their energy.[3]
The feast day coincides with Shravan Poornima of the month of Shravan in the Hindu lunisolar calendar which is celebrated as Janāi Purnimā (Raksha Bandhan), the festival of the sacred thread. The festival occurs in August.[4][5]
Production
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Ingredient_of_Kwati.jpg/221px-Ingredient_of_Kwati.jpg)
Nine varieties of beans are used to make kwāti. The most commonly used ingredients are black gram, green gram, chickpea, field bean, soybean, field pea, garden pea, cowpea and rice bean.
The beans are soaked in water for three to four days until they have sprouted. They are boiled with various spices to make a thick soup. Lovage seeds are bloomed in oil and added to it as the special seasoning. Flatbread cut into one-and-a-half-inch squares can be boiled with the kwāti for variety.[6][7]
See also
References
- ^ Vaidya, Tulasī Rāma; Mānandhara, Triratna; Joshi, Shankar Lal (1993). Social History of Nepal. Anmol Publications. p. 148. ISBN 9788170417996.
- ^ "Kwati". Foods of Social and Ritual Significance. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
- ^ Kasajoo, Bhawana (2013-08-26). "Nepali Tummy!!: Kwati (Nepali Beans/Himalayan Soup)!!". Nepali Tummy!!. Retrieved 2018-09-03.
- ^ "Janai Purnima festival today". The Rising Nepal. Kathmandu. 16 August 2008. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ "Janai Purnima‚ festival of sacred thread‚ today". The Himalayan Times. Kathmandu. 2 August 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ Shrestha, Rukmini (2008). Nasā Twansā Wāsa Nan Kha [Food and Drinks Are Also Medicines] (in Newari). Kathmandu: Rukmini Shrestha. p. 34.
- ^ Anderson, Mary M. (1971). The Festivals of Nepal. Allen and Unwin. p. 98. ISBN 9780043940013.