Nepalese cuisine comprises a variety of cuisines based upon ethnicity, soil and climate relating to Nepal’s cultural diversity and geography.

Dal-bhat-tarkari (Nepali: दाल भात तरकारी) is eaten throughout Nepal. Dal is a soup made of lentils and spices, served together with boiled rice, bhat, and another vegetable or meat dish, tarkari. Condiments are usually small amounts of spicy pickle (achaar, अचार) which can be fresh or fermented and green fried leaves, like spinach or mustard leaves or other green vegetables. The variety of these is staggering, said to number in the thousands. Other accompaniments may be sliced lime (kagati) with fresh green chili (hariyo khursani). Dhindo (ढिंडो) is a traditional food of Nepal which has gradually been replaced by rice. It is flour (corn/buckwheat/millet/wheat) boiled to  thick porridge.

Much of the cuisine are variations on Tibetan and Indian origins. Momo—Tibetan style dumplings with Nepalese spices—are one of the most popular fast foods in Nepal. They were originally filled with buffalo meat but now also with goat or chicken, as well as vegetarian preparations. Chow mein is a Nepali favorite in modern times based on Chinese-style stir fried noodles.

Special foods such as selroti and anarasa are eaten during festivals such as Tihar, while the Tibetan Buddhist ethnic groups bakes the hard biscuit Khapse for their festivals.

In Nepal there are many types of meat but it is still an easy place to be a vegetarian. To kill a cow in Nepal is illegal so cow meat is rare, and very few Nepalese would ever touch it.

Meals are traditionally eaten sitting on the floor but today many people have kitchen tables in their homes, especially in the cities. The food is often eaten by hand and it is important to eat with your right hand, the left is for toilet use! Always wash your hands before the food.

If you want to get more inspiration on Nepali food we can recommend the mouth watering blog Taste of Nepal by Jyoti Pathak.

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