Wanna Make Momo’s?
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
In Nepal momos are a huge part of the culture. Momos are small dumplings that have either a meat or vegetable filling. People in Nepal and India love to eat momos, and especially us Kopila kids! Momos are very special to us, and we only get to eat them on the rare occasions when we go out to eat.
This last June a family of volunteers came to visit us. Since they knew we loved momos so much, they wanted to make them with us so that we could all learn together. In the Children’s home the kids prepare a meal once a week for the whole family. Normally, this meal is on Saturdays since we don’t have school that day, and preparing meals in Nepal can take many hours.
The momo preparations started days in advance by having all of our big brothers shopping for the supplies, including a momo steamer which is very important to the recipe. When the day came to make the momos, all of the kids started preparing the food right after lunch. Here at Kopila we love to have competitions so we of course split into teams. We also love music and do everything with loud music. Our normal playlist includes: Justin Bieber, Beyoncé and One Direction.
The first part of making the momo’s is chopping all of the veggies. Auntie Claire taught us the perfect way to chop the veggies so that they would be small and all the same size. The boys chopped up all the meat; we normally use fresh meat that has been butchered a few hours prior. Uncle Rob helped a group of kids prepare the steamer for the momo cooking. After several hours of prep we were finally ready for cooking.
Overall, this was such a fun day and we are so glad that we now know how to make momos. Thank you to the Vogel family for teachings us how to make an important meal of our own country, and making our day so special! We enjoyed cooking as much as eating them. We will be making them again soon. We hope that all of you will find our blog very helpful and that you will make this delicious food too.
Nepali Momo Recipe
By SB Age: 16
Momo Ingredients
· 2 large chopped onion
· 3 cloves minced garlic
· 1 tablespoon grated ginger
· 2 grated carrots (for veggie only)
· 2 cups cooked and chopped potatoes (for veggie only)
· ½ small head green cabbage (for veggie only)
· 1 tablespoon momo masala
· 1 tablespoon Cumin
· 1 teaspoon Coriander leaf
· 2 or 3 cups meat of choice (chicken or goat)
· ½ cup veggie oil
· Other spices to taste
· Salt to taste
Dough Ingredients
· 3 ½ cup flour (plus extra for kneading)
· ½ teaspoon salt
· Water
Chutney Ingredients
· ½ cup Sesame seeds
· 3 tomatoes
· 3 chilies
· 1 tablespoon sesame oil
· Salt to taste
· 2 sichuan pepper
· 1 clove garlic
Step 1
1. Chop all the required vegetables
2. Mix all the vegetables together in a big pot
3. Mix well and salt to taste
4. Add momo masala and sprinkle with coriander
Step 2
1. Prepare the dough
2. Put flour and salt mixture in large bowl
3. Add ½ cup of water
4. Continue adding water until dough sticks together in a small ball. Be careful that the dough isn’t too tough. You want it soft and not sticky.
5. Place dough in saran-wrap and leave on counter 10 mins
Step 3
1. Prepare Chutney while dough is resting
2. Heat sesame seeds
3. Boil tomatoes in a pot of water
4. Mix all ingredients in food processor
5. Place in a bowl for serving
Step 4
1. Roll out dough and cut out 3-4 inch circles (make sure the dough is thin)
2. Add mix into the center of the dough circle
3. Seal the dough using a fork or using your hands
Step 5
1. Prepare steamer
2. Place momos in steamer for 10 minutes
3. Take out of steamer
4. Serve hot with chutney
