Food in Western Nepal Hills

The daily staple for most Nepali in western hills of the country is a set menu, twice a day, of rice, vegetable or chicken/mutton/fish curry, lentils, chutney/achar, salads and other mini dishes. This is generally referred to as Nepali Khana Set, Thakali Set or the Nepali Thali Set. But within each dish there is so much variety that it would be impossible to explain what this really means in just one serving. Families vary the kind of vegetable based on what's available in their gardens. The kind of lentils might depend on the climate, for example gahat dal (lentil soup made from a particular kind of Horse gram) keeps you warm in winter. Even “curry” can be made in ten different ways. Similarly, rice is sometimes swapped or complemented with roti (chapati) or dhido (similar to xima from Sub-Saharan African cuisine), which can be made from a variety of flours like corn, millet, buckwheat, etc.

Between the two main meals, people also have snacks, either as light breakfast, light lunch, or both. There are many options for this: various kinds of rotis (flat bread) and pancakes, khatte, puwa, dai-chiura, beaten rice, roasted/popped corn, etc. etc. Tea has become pretty common in the last couple decades as well.

That is the kind of food culture in the Western hills of Nepal as I have learned it from my parents and grandparents. If you go to the southern plains of the country, you’ll find varieties of sweets and other delicacies. The capital Kathmandu, influenced by the Newar culture has an incredibly rich cuisine too. We still don't know whether the world famous momos that Nepal has are the creations of Kathmandu or Tibet. We know that Kathmandu was an important part of the trade route between Tibet and India so it could be either way. The northern region of Nepal, closer to the Himalayas, and thus colder than here in Pokhara, has its own set of food culture, where they prioritize grains and meat (usually from yak or mountain goat) over vegetables.

Today, momos are one of the favorite snacks in the country. The dip, mostly made out of tomato (like salsa roja), is arguably the best part. This is called either “achar” (in Kathmandu) or “chutney” (in Pokhara, for example). Obviously, it doesn’t taste the same everywhere. Every house, every street vendor, every restaurant has its little secret way of making it. For me, the secret is timur (Himalayan Sichuan pepper). The “chutney” that comes with your Thali Set might be different than the one that comes with your Fish Fries, which might be different than the one that comes with your momos. Steamed momos are quite healthy as well, therefore if you’re having difficulties deciding on your order when in Nepal, order momos!

Western Nepal, where we are from, might not take the first place competing against the food from other regions of Nepal, in terms of flavor or richness but that doesn’t seem to be the point. The focus on food here seems to be in nutrition and balanced diet, for example, in the Thali Set, you’ve lentils for proteins and fibers, rice/dhindo for carbs, ghee (butter) topping for fat, green vegetables for vitamins. Meat has become more common now but used to be a delicacy in the past, but that’s for another story. The way our ancestors ate here, it seems like they did eat good and stay healthy, but did not indulge in it. Even the rice wine, popular among trekkers today, was traditionally only consumed by communities and castes that engage in labor intensive tasks and those living in colder regions.

I think that this post turned out to be more of a personal reflection of the kind of food that I have seen and experienced in Pokhara and the hills around than an academic elaboration of the culinary history and detail in these regions. But at least, I hope that it gives you some insight into the kind of food we have. The reality is so more nuanced than I have been able to detail here. Even at home, the thali that my sister cooks is so much different than the one my mom cooks which is also very different than the one that my aama (grandmother) cooks. On top of that, each one of them have not one but many cooking styles. That is to say that our cooking is both rich and flexible. I invite you for the experience.