How to Make Momos
edits by:Ben Rubenstein, KnowItSome, Andy Zhang, Flickety (see all)
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Momo are a food from Tibet and northern Nepal. They are steamed or fried dumplings with a
minced meat or vegetable filling. They are served piping hot, and are often enjoyed with a
spicy tomato sauce.
editIngredients
To make the dough
1 lb (500 g) all purpose flour
water
To make the meat filling
1lb (500 g) ground minced meat (water buffalo is traditional, but beef, pork, lamb or a
mixture work well)
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup cabbage, finely chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon timur (Szechwan pepper)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 fresh red chilies, minced (optional)
salt to taste (~1 teaspoon)
To make the vegetarian filling
1 lb (500 g) cabbage, finely chopped
1 lb (500 g) tofu, cubed
1/4 lb (250g) mushrooms (shitake or portobello work well)
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup cilantro (coriander), chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon vegetable bouillon (stock)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon timur (Szechwan pepper)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3 fresh red chilies, minced (optional)
salt to taste
To make the sauce
3 large tomatoes
1 bell pepper (capsicum)
3 green chilies
1 cup cilantro (coriander), chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Salt to taste
Steps
Make the sauce.
1. Roast the tomatoes, bell pepper and chilies, by either putting them over an open
flame or by cutting them in half and putting them under a broiler until the skin
blackens and splits .
2. Place all the sauce ingredients in a blender until they are smooth. Add some water
if necessary.
3. Refrigerate the sauce until momo are ready to be served.
Make the filling.
1. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly in a bowl, preferably by hand.
2. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the dough.
1. Pour all the flour onto a large, clean surface.
2. Make a well in the pile of flour and mix in about 1/2 cup of water.
3. Mix the flour and water very well by hand and keep adding water until you
make a ball of dough that sticks to itself, but does not cling to your hand.
4. Knead the dough very well until it is flexible and smooth.
Make the wrappers.
1. Roll the dough out on a well floured surface until it is 1/8in (3mm) thick. Use a
2in (5cm) cookie cutter or glass to cut out the rounds of dough.
2. Pinch a small piece of dough and roll it into a smooth ball in your hands. You can
now flatten it into a circle using a rolling pin or a chapati/tortilla press.
Assembling momo.
1. For round momo:
1. Put one round of dough in your left hand, and add a tablespoonful of filling in
the center of the dough.
2. With your right hand pinch a little bit of the edge of the dough together - just
enough to make a small fold between your thumb and forefinger.
3. Continue pinching around the circle little by little, keeping your thumb in
place. Use your forefinger to grab the next little piece of dough, folding and
pinching it into the original fold/pinch being held by your thumb. Basically,
you will be pinching the whole edge of the circle into one spot.
4. Continue folding and pinching all around the edge of the circle until you come
back around to where you started and then close the hole with a final pinch.
Make sure you seal the hole on top of the momo.
2. For half-moon momo:
1. Put one round of dough in your left hand, and add a tablespoonful of filling in
the center of the dough.
2. Fold your circle of dough in half, covering over the filling.
3. Pinch the two edges of the half circle so that there is no open edge in your half
circle, and the filling is completely enclosed in the dough. This is the basic
half-moon shape. You can experiment with different folds and pinches to seal
the momo to make it more decorative.
Cooking momo.
1. For steamed momo:
1. Boil water in a large steamer pot.
2. Lightly oil the steamer basket with vegetable oil to keep the momos from
sticking.
3. Place momo in the steamer basket so that they do not touch each other or the
sides of the basket.
4. Steam the momo for 10 minutes.
2. For pan-fried momo:
1. Heat a frying pan to medium high heat.
2. Light coat the bottom of the pan with vegetable oil.
3. Carefully place momo in the pan so that they do not touch each other or the
sides of the pan.
4. Fry until golden brown.
5. Pour about 1 tablespoon of water into the hot pan and quickly cover, to finish
the momo by steaming.
3. Serve the momo immediately after cooking them - they are best when piping hot.
The sauce can either be poured over the momo, or served on the side for dunking.
Tips
Make sure you have a non-stick surface and a damp cloth or lid handy to keep the
assembled momo from drying out while you are assembling more. You can lay the
momos in the lightly-greased steamer and keep the lid on them, or you can lay them
on wax paper and cover them with the damp cloth.
Momo are usually bite-sized foods. They can be quite juicy, so be careful when you
bite into them.
Do not let the dough dry out, or it will be hard to work with.
