What We Eat

Here is a brief overview of what is part of our diet here in Nepal...

Milk

I think because of the Hindu 'Holy Cow' belief, they can't bare to round up a million cows and use them for their dairy. (We are talking about a country where the cows have the right away in city traffic, not the people). Therefore, there is a significant lack of dairy products here. I didn't realize how much I loved cheese and yogurt until I had no chance of really finding it.

Here is the milk that we use. It sits in our pantry for weeks until it is ready to be opened. I lived in Romania and Croatia and during that time, I never once opened a 'boxed milk'. Axel always tried to convince me that it wasn't so bad but I was headstrong and the gross factor was way too high in my books. Now, over 9 years later, I have given into using boxed, unrefridgerated milk on a daily basis. I am so converted that Axel found some fresh milk nearby and that I would not drink. In a bag, on ice? Nah, ah.

Yogurt

This is the only stuff I can find that remotely resembles real yogurt. Again, you buy this stuff unrefridgerated and you can even take it from a communal container. I splurge a little and buy the one that is in its own container. Cause I am a little snobby like that.

This isn't so bad if you blend up some mango, strawberries, or whatever is to your liking and mix it with this 'sweetened' stuff. It is not quite like my favourite Yoplait Thick and Creamy yogurt, but it will have to do.

Eggs

I knew our chickens would come in handy. Everyday, we get an egg out of our hen and, what do you know, it tastes the same as all other eggs I have eaten. It almost makes it worth waking at the butt crack of dawn from the loud rooster's cock-a-doodle-doo.

I said almost...

Fruit and Vegetables

If it is in season, you can find it. If not, it is like trying to find an English song on the radio. (It ain't going to happen). We have plenty of produce at our home but it is also fun to barter on the streets.

Mangos and lychees

Typical fruit vendor

Here is part of our garden. It is full force right now and gives us plenty of stuff for our typical stirfrys.

This is our squash that had latched on to our peach tree.

Dal

No real Nepali meal is complete without dal. It is the staple food here and our maid, Kopila, makes it every night. The kids love it, I enjoy it, and Axel hates it. It is a seed of some kind and I hear it is an excellent source of protein. Although Axel and I love Indian food we also both agree that it all just looks like various shades of poop. Dal is the yellow kind. However, if you close your eyes and try it, it is quite tasty.

MoMos

A close second to dal is the national Nepali food, The MoMo. If you take a Nepalese person to a restaurant, they want momos; if you invite them for dinner, they want momos; if you go to the grocery store to buy food, they buy momos. I admit, they are tasty but their obsession for the momo baffles me. They also have a way of telling if the momo is good or poorly made. I have yet to figure it out. I have had momos that cost 50 cents for a dozen, and I have had momos that cost $3 a dozen (which is expensive for Nepal). They taste the same, it is a momo.

The Nepalese people love the momo so much they have a momo mascot, you know, kind of like Ronald McDonald.

The momo man

I do enjoy my momo every now and then. They come in veg, chicken or buff (as in buffalo). Not a bad snack, just not every day, every meal, all the time--thank you.

Now that I have shared with you what is on the menu, do you still want to come over for dinner?