Nepalese cuisine refers to the cuisines of
NepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia and the world's youngest republic. It is bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. The
cultural diversityCultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. Cultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. Cultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a...
of Nepal has provided an ample space for the growth of a number of cuisines based on the ethnic groups and the geographical features of the nation. Hence, Nepalese cuisine encompasses a whole array of different cuisines rather than one single type of cuisine. Dal bhat-- lentil soup served over boiled rice -- is a staple dish of Nepal.
- Newari cuisine
Newa cuisine is a type of cuisine developed over centuries by the Newars of Nepal.- Vegetarian :* Baji * Jaa * Chataamari...
- NewarThe Newa are the indigenous people of Nepal's Kathmandu Valley. Newars are a linguistic community with Tibeto-Burman and Indo ethnictiy/race, bound together by a common language....
s are an ethnic group originally living in the Kathmandu Valley, now also in bazaar towns elsewhere in the hills (Himalayan foothills, up to about 10,000'/3,000m).
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Nepalese cuisine refers to the cuisines of
NepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia and the world's youngest republic. It is bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. The
cultural diversityCultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. Cultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. Cultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a...
of Nepal has provided an ample space for the growth of a number of cuisines based on the ethnic groups and the geographical features of the nation. Hence, Nepalese cuisine encompasses a whole array of different cuisines rather than one single type of cuisine. Dal bhat-- lentil soup served over boiled rice -- is a staple dish of Nepal.
Types
- Newari cuisine
Newa cuisine is a type of cuisine developed over centuries by the Newars of Nepal.- Vegetarian :* Baji * Jaa * Chataamari...
- NewarThe Newa are the indigenous people of Nepal's Kathmandu Valley. Newars are a linguistic community with Tibeto-Burman and Indo ethnictiy/race, bound together by a common language....
s are an ethnic group originally living in the Kathmandu Valley, now also in bazaar towns elsewhere in the hills (Himalayan foothills, up to about 10,000'/3,000m). Widespread use of water buffalo meat even though it is avoided by stricter Hindus as too cow-like. Also has various fermented preparations. In the fertile Kathmandu and Pokhara valleys this cuisine often includes a greater variety of foodstuffs -- particularly vegetables -- than are available in most of the hills.
- Khas or Pahari cuisine - Food of upper-caste Hindus in the hills, conforming to their dietary restrictions. Dal-Bhat-Tarkari is the standard meal eaten twice daily. Dal is a spicy lentil sauce poured over bhat (boiled rice). Tarkari are vegetables such as mustard greens, daikon radish, potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, cauliflower, cabbage, squash cooked with spices. Other accompaniments are a small amount of extremely spicy chutney (made from fresh ingredients) or achar (pickle), often curd, sometimes meat or fish. Alternatives to boiled rice are roti (unleavened flat wheat bread) or coarse cornmeal mush called ato. Goat and fish are the most widely eaten forms of animal flesh. Hindus never eat beef, except for untouchables possibly eating animals that have died of natural causes. Buffalo is avoided by most Hindus, except Newars and janjati, although the newer generation of Brahmans and Kshetrys widely consume them in the form of the immensly popular food called Mo: Mo: & other Newari foods. Pork is consumed only by lower castes and janjati. Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other bird...
and Mutton is usually acceptable to all but the highest Brahman caste. Fruit traditionally grown in the hills include "suntala" (mandarin orange), "kaguti" (lime), "nibuwa" (lemon), "nashpati" (asian pear), and "kaphal" (bayberry or Myrica nagi).
- Terai cuisine - cuisine of lowlands south of Mahabharat Lekh
The Mahabharat Lekh or Range is a major east-west mountain range with elevations 1,500 to 2,700 meters along the crest, paralleling the much higher Great Himalaya range from the Indus River in Pakistan across northern India, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan but then the two ranges become increasingly...
. Often indistinguishable from cuisine of adjacent parts of IndiaThe cuisine of India is characterized by sophisticated and subtle use of various spices, herbs and other vegetables grown in India and also for the widespread practice of vegetarianism across many sections of its society. Each family of Indian cuisine is characterized by a wide assortment of dishes...
, but with some variations among TharuThe Tharu people mainly live in the Surkhet Valley in the west mountain region, Chitwan Valley, Dang Valley,Deukhuri Valley,Sindhuli and Udyapur in Inner Terai Valleys of Nepal and the Terai plains on the border of Nepal and India. The population of Nepal is 28,287,147 , of which the Tharu people...
and other ethnic groups. Also more varied than hill cuisine with a greater variety of crops grown locally or grown in cooler climates in adjacent hill regions as cash crops and exported to the Terai.Fruit commonly grown in the terai include mango, "mewa" (papaya), "kera" (banana) and "katar" (jackfruit).
- Himalayan cuisine - Eaten by culturally Tibetan and similar ethnic groups in northern parts of the country. Barley
Barley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare. It serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting and in health food. It is used in soups, stews and barley bread in various countries, such as Scotland and in Africa...
and milletThe millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
are the main grains. Heavy use of potatoes. The meat of yaks and possibly yak-cow hybrids may be used, as well as their milk.
- Snacks commonly eaten outside mealtimes include popped or parched corn, "chiura" (beaten rice), "samosa" (turnovers stuffed with meat or vegetables), biscuits (packaged cookies) and Indian-style sweets.
- Beverages - tea usually taken with milk and sugar, "jand" (homemade beer made from rice), "sarbat" (juice of sugar cane), "raksi" (spirits made in rustic distilleries). At higher elevations "chyang" (millet beer).
Etiquette
Meals are traditionally eaten seated or squatting on the floor, although urban restaurants mostly have tables and chairs. A large mound of boiled rice surrounded by smaller mounds of prepared vegetables, fresh chutney or preserved pickles, and sometimes curd, fish or meat is served on a rimmed brass or stainless steel plate about 12"/30cm. diameter. Dal and vegetables cooked in sauce will be served in separate small bowls, to be poured over the rice. Food is moved to the mouth with the fingers of the right hand. The left hand should never touch food but may be used for cups and glasses. The right hand is rinsed before and after eating.
Ritually important distinctions are made between unhusked rice ("dhan"), husked uncooked rice ("chamal") and boiled rice ("bhat"). Once rice has been cooked, it should only be touched by the one who eats it, except that a wife may finish her husband's leftovers, and small children can eat the leftovers of either parent. It is considered polluting to eat boiled rice in the presence of anyone from a lower caste so a caste-conscious individual may decline to eat rice with foreigners. Beaten rice ("chiura") is less subject to ritual pollution, as are roti or chapatis (unleavened bread) and boiled grains other than rice.
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