Momo soup

RECIPE: MOMO SOUP

Momo Soup is a healthy, filling and hearty meal. Momos are added to a vegetable loaded soup. A traditional Nepali dish, I’ve replaced the meat filling in the momos with finely chopped vegetables.

Our visit to Nepal many years ago was a memorable one. I loved the country and the people were very friendly. Though we had gone there in the month of April, it was freezing cold. The place we stayed at, had a very small basic kitchen.Therefore, no fancy dishes. But they served a huge bowlful of piping hot momo soup.

What is Momo?

Till my visit to Nepal, had no even heard of momo! Our first meal was momo soup.” What is momo?” I asked the cook. He brought out a bowl of soup and showed me the momos. I thought, is that all we get for food? However, once I got my veggie momo soup, I wanted some more. It was filling, warming to the heart on a cold chilly day and delicious. For nearly a whole week, momo soup was my dinner. Momos basically resemble dumplings, wantons, pot stickers or dim sums.

Introduced By The Chinese

Momos(steamed bread) was introduced by the Chinese to the Himalayan countries of Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan and slowly became popular in the North eastern states of India. As the north eastern population travelled to the other parts of India, momos became more popular. Momos can be fried, steamed or cooked along with soups. Making different shaped momos is an art. 

Memories of Nepal came back and I had to make the soup at home. I changed the recipe quite a bit to suit my taste and on the availability of ingredients. So please feel free to play around with the ingredients. 

Updated 21/10/2018

Since the first time when I tasted momos in Nepal, I’ve had them umpteen of times in India. It is a popular Street Food in every Foodie Street of India. Mostly you get steamed ones on the street. The fillings vary from meat ones, veggies to paneer, yes paneer ones and they taste awesome. Hot steaming momos served with a dipping sauce and you’ve had a healthy filling meal.

Momo Soup

I still love my momo soup as a wholesome meal. The vegetables keep on varying depending on what is available. I have become more adventurous with the stuffing too, but leaving the original recipe as a guideline. I’ve sometimes added steamed rice to the stuffing along with veggies, have added tofu, paneer, mushrooms etc.

Some Indo Chinese Recipes On My Blog:

Baby Corn Manchurian

Mushroom Egg Fried Rice

Sesame Honey Chilli Potatoes

Grilled Cauliflower

Chinese Bhel

Vegetarian Thukpa Soup

Ingredients Required For Momo Soup:

• Plain Flour – all purpose flour for the momos. Can use wheat flour, but they tend to soften in the soup.
• Baking Powder – add a pinch to get that melt in the mouth kind of momos. Without baking powder, they tend to become rubbery depending on the type of flour.
• Salt – for the momo dough and the soup.
• Oil – for the momo dough and soup. Use sesame seed oil if you have any.
• Water – for momo dough and the soup. Can replace water with vegetable stock for the soup.
• Mixed Vegetables – for the stuffing use shredded carrot, cabbage, finely chopped onion, garlic, ginger, finely chopped zucchini, mushrooms, celery stalks, French Beans etc. Make sure your shred or finely chop the vegetables for filling momos. Can also use paneer, leftover rice or tofu.
• Mixed Vegetables – for the soup. Use vegetables like carrot, zucchini, bell pepper, mushrooms, cauliflower, cabbage, sweet corn, baby corn, celery, pak choy, spinach, snow peas, French Beans, spring onion, etc.
• Garlic – minced for the filling. Finely chopped for the soup.
• Ginger – minced for the filling. Finely chopped for the soup.
• Soy Sauce – for the filling and the soup.
• Chilli Flakes – for the filling and the soup.
• Sesame Seeds – for the filling and the soup.
• Honey – for the soup. Can use brown sugar or male syrup.
• Rice Vinegar – or any good quality vinegar for the soup.
• Pepper Powder – or sichuan pepper powder
• Chilli Sauce – homemade or ready made for the soup and to serve on the side. Check for homemade chilli sauce here.
• Star Anise – for the soup.