Mero Dhangadhi

and is there any other chinese influenced food in nepal? besides chau mein, thukpa and momo? i know that the way we prepare saag is exactly how the chinese do it

Thukpa and Mo:mo have Tibetan roots. Chau mein is Chinese. I think the distinction between what is Tibetan and what is Chinese is very important. Actual Chinese influence in Nepal is a fairly new thing, but Tibetan influences have been going on for centuries. How we prepare saag is how it’s always been prepared (saag + dheedo combo used to be pretty famous), so I doubt there’s any Chinese influence there. I know some of my African friends (from Ghana) prepare it like we do so maybe that’s just a co-incidence. I think the dumpling and noodle dishes are influences from Tibet and in some cases China. There is a dish called “American Chop-suey” but it’s not prepared like how Americans prepare it. It’s some sort of a weird hybrid of a hybrid that tastes delicious. That’s all I can think of now. Maybe my followers have more to add (please do!)

hey! is nepali chau mein made with soy sauce? do they even use soy sauce in nepal? also, chow mein is actually an american-chinese food as it was invented in the very early 20th century in american china town. does it mean there is no long history of noodle eating in nepal?

It can be. Chau mein recipe varies from restaurant to restaurant and some use soy-sauce while others don’t. I know we used soy sauce in our cooking, but it’s a fairly new thing for Nepal that came from Chinese influence (as far as I know). Modern day Nepal has A LOT of influences when it comes to the cuisine. Noodle eating was a thing in northern Nepal in the high Himalayas due to influence from Tibet. But as for mid-southern Nepal, it’s not something that has been going on for a very long time. There are a lot of dishes that are kind of hybrids of the original versions and we have taken it and mixed some Nepali influence in it. 

If you look at the Madhesi leader Mahato, you can see that he has Indian roots. In fact he only got the Nepali citizenship decades after having lived in Nepal. It is terrifying to Nepali from hills and mountain region to see how Indians are infiltrating our land, our culture (prople have adopted SO many Indian customs in thr last decades! for example rakshya bandan or this whole lehengi dress thing), our everything. They also steal and force our girls to work as slaves in brothels

cont…. They say that the Madhesh was an own kingdom and it was never affiliated with Nepal until the British Raj handed the Madesh over to Nepal. They say it’s culturally, ethnically and historically connected to India. Can’t we say the same thing about Sikkim/Darjeeling too? That it is Nepali land? That is belongs to us?

I can’t believe you’re worried about Nepalis wearing the lehenga?? My grandmother (who has no ties to India and is a 100% Nepali along with all her family) wore a lehenga to her wedding some 60 years ago, so lehenga is not exclusively Indian. It’s gaining popularity now due to Bollywood fashion trends but that doesn’t mean, it solely belongs to India. Rakshya Bandan is a nice holiday that celebrates the bond between a brother and a sister. I don’t see a negative thing here? If you don’t like it don’t celebrate it. Let other people celebrate what they want. With this logic should we also start worrying about people celebrating Xmas and Valentines day or any other festivals that aren’t “Nepali”.

There are lots of people in Nepal who have Indian roots, and many of those people consider themselves to be Nepali and love Nepal. To use their ethnicity and accuse them of being against Nepal and “infiltrating Nepal” without evidence of malice is quite frankly, racist. You’re generalizing an entire race of people based on your own prejudices and the actions of a few others. 

I don’t even know where to begin with the “steal our girls to work as slaves in brothels” argument because that is a very common picture that people like to paint: “terrifying Madhesi man comes and steals innocent Nepali girl!” Using this issue in this context is very very insulting to many groups of people. It is an extremely complicated issue and you cannot blame one race/ethnicity for it; that is offensive, inaccurate and absurd.  

I know that a lot of Madhesi people (supporters of the separatist movement) do not consider themselves to be Nepali and are against Nepal, especially the Nepali hill people. There is a lot of tension going on in Nepal and India is aiding these separatist groups because India has a lot to benefit from splitting Nepal up (hydro-power resources in southern Nepali rivers like Karnali river etc have massive economic gains). But you cannot just accuse an ENTIRE RACE because some of these scum happen to be from that ethnic group. This does nothing but spread fear and hatred amongst people and divides us further. The argument that these separatist Madhesi group have about how they had their own kingdom whatever is just their way of showing that they have a valid point (in their minds). A lot of Nepali people live in southern Nepal, and they absolutely do not want to separate from Nepal. Darjeeling has a lot of ethnically Nepali people but it’s never going to be part of Nepal because it belongs to India. They will always respect Nepal because their ancestors were Nepali just like Madhesis will respect India because their ancestors were Indian. But these separatist groups are selfish and evil and are power hungry and have no love for Nepal. Don’t lump these idiots in with the Madhesi people who love Nepal and consider themselves to be Nepali. 

how do nepali actually eat thukpa? with sticks? and do people eat it regularly or?

I’m not sure. I always used forks but I realize that might not be how most people typically eat it. Perhaps some of my followers will be able to answer it. I didn’t eat thukpa regularly, so I have no idea.

i checked your faq and i guess question tag (or something??), but i didn't really see anything about this. i was wondering if you have any suggestions for someone who has never tried/ made nepali food who is thinking about making it? or maybe just your favorite foods??

Check out the “cuisine” tag for recipes and such. I know I gave one of my Norwegian friends on here a recipe for momo and she really liked it. The recipe is posted under the cuisine tag. I’ll reblog it again.

Maybe try making something simple like badaam-sandheko (peanut salsa) or some simple curry. Or just making tomato aachar (chutney/sauce) is also fairly easy. I’ve posted a recipe for that on here too. The key thing with Nepali cooking is making sure you have the proper Nepali spices like cumin powder and coriander powder or Nepali garam masala.

I don’t really know what kind of a food you’re looking for a maybe let me know if you’re looking for snacks or a full course meal type of a deal or desert. Idk Nepali food is so diverse and there is so much that I don’t know what exactly to suggest. I’ll search and post some easy recipes and then you can pick some.