Jhol Momo (Nepali Momos in Spicy Sesame-Tomato Soup)

Jhol momo is the youngest of the Kathmandu momo family, invented sometime in the late 1990s in the small momo shops of Patan and Bhaktapur, possibly by a vendor who found himself with too much loose achar and a stack of fresh momos waiting for it. Whoever they were, they invented one of the most addictive bowls of food on the planet. Steamed momos sit in a thin, smoky, spicy tomato-sesame broth, and you eat them with a spoon: dumpling, sip of broth, dumpling, sip of broth, until the bowl is empty and you are warm to your fingertips.

It is the perfect cold-weather food. The technique is simple, make momos, make a beautiful achar, then thin the achar into a soup with a little stock or water, but every step matters. The tomatoes must be properly charred. The sesame must be properly toasted. The mustard oil must be properly bloomed. Get those right and a single bowl will tell you exactly why Kathmandu’s winters revolve around this dish.

Ingredients

For the momos

• 1 batch of chicken momos or veg momos (about 24 dumplings, freshly steamed)

For the jhol (broth)

• 5 medium ripe tomatoes (about 600 g)
• 1/3 cup white sesame seeds (til)
• 4 dried red chilies (more or less to taste)
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 3 tablespoons mustard oil
• 1/4 teaspoon methi (fenugreek) seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground timur (Nepali Sichuan pepper), optional but recommended
• 2 to 2.5 cups warm chicken or vegetable stock (or hot water)
• 1.5 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

To garnish

• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced and fried golden in a teaspoon of oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 spring onion, finely sliced
• A few extra toasted sesame seeds
• A drizzle of fresh mustard oil

Instructions

1. Char the tomatoes: Holding each tomato with tongs over an open gas flame, rotate slowly until the skin is blistered and blackened all over, about 3–4 minutes per tomato. (No gas? Roast under a hot broiler on a foil-lined tray, turning every 2 minutes for about 10 minutes total.) Let them cool, then peel off the loose blackened skin. A few flecks of char left behind are good.

2. Toast the sesame seeds: In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the sesame seeds, stirring constantly, for 2–3 minutes until they turn pale gold and smell nutty. Watch closely, they go from done to burnt in seconds. Tip onto a plate to stop the cooking. Reserve about 1 tablespoon for garnish.

3. Bloom the spices: Heat the mustard oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high until it just begins to smoke and the raw bitterness lifts off. Reduce the heat to medium and add the dried red chilies, they should darken and fragrance the oil within 15 seconds (do not let them blacken). Add the methi seeds and cumin seeds and let them sizzle for another 10 seconds.

4. Build the base: Add the garlic and ginger and stir for 30 seconds until aromatic, then add the charred tomatoes, the toasted sesame seeds (reserving the tablespoon for garnish), the ground coriander, turmeric, and salt. Cook, stirring and crushing the tomatoes with the back of the spoon, for 6–8 minutes until the mixture looks jammy and the oil starts to separate at the edges.

5. Blend smooth: Transfer the entire contents of the pot to a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend on high until completely smooth, about 1 minute. The broth should be a deep brick-red and thick at this point, that is correct.

6. Thin into soup: Return the blended mixture to the pot. Add 2 cups of warm stock or hot water and stir well, the consistency should be that of a thin tomato soup, just barely coating the back of a spoon. Bring to a gentle simmer, taste, and adjust salt. Add another 1/2 cup of stock if it feels too thick. Stir in the lemon juice and the timur, if using.

7. Assemble: Steam the momos according to your chosen recipe. Divide the hot momos between four warm bowls (about 6 momos per bowl), then ladle the hot jhol over them so they are at least half-submerged. Top with the fried garlic, a sprinkle of the reserved sesame seeds, the spring onion, the cilantro, and a few drops of fresh mustard oil. Serve immediately.

Notes

• Eating order: Spoon out a momo, take a sip of broth, repeat. The broth is the point, drink the bowl when the momos are gone.
• Make-ahead: The jhol keeps in the fridge for 5 days and freezes well for a month. Just steam fresh momos to serve.
• Heat level: Four dried chilies makes a respectable Kathmandu-medium. Two will be mild; six will make your eyes water. Adjust to your room.
• Variation: jhol kothey: Pan-fry the bottoms of the steamed momos before plunging them into the broth, see khote momo, for a textural contrast that is hard to beat.