Momo with Tomato Achaar

Momo? Yes Momo! Those hot, juicy, straight out of the steamer, healthy, spicy, and oh so heavenlyNepalese dumplings. Oh those things you get at the Boulder farmers marker, the Viatnamese veggie dumplings. Well, yeah, but this is served with a spicy, fiery tomato chutney. Trust me, much better!

I had some Nepalese friends in Grad school. One of them introduced me to Momo's. Well, when I say introduced, I mean, she made them, and I devoured them. Did I learn how to make it from a true blue 100% Nepalese who would be more than willing to demonstrate the art of Momo making? Nope. (Duh! I know!) No I did not.

Now, with zero access to a "willing to demonstrate" Nepali, I had to rely on recipes online, youtube and what not. But viola! the Momo's turned out absolutely delicious! Without further ado, let me jump straight into the steamer... I mean the recipe.

For about, 24 Momo's (They disappear fast, so 24 is not that much), you'll need:

Momo wrapper:
1 cup Maida (or atta)
salt
1 tbsp oil
Water

Knead well with as little water as possible. Then cover with a damp cloth and keep aside for half an hour.

Filling:
About 2 cups of very finely chopped (I used a chopper) veggies. I used carrots, cabbage, bell pepper and (crimini) mushrooms.
Onion
Green chilli
Cilantro
Ginger
Garlic
cumin

Chop the onions, ginger, garlic, and green chilli very fine in a chopper. Heat a little oil, roast the onion etc etc. Once cooked (does not have to be brown), add all the other veggies. turn the heat off. Roast for 1-2 minutes. turn the heat off. Add salt, cilantro, cumin powder (optional), and keep aside. The veggies should not be fully cooked and dry.

Tomato Achaar:
3 tomatos
1 inch ginger
1-2 garlic cloves
4 green chillies (I used 4 serrano peppers with 3 tomatoes)
Salt
Cilantro.

Bake tomatoes in oven at 450F for about half hour. You could also just boil them, but I feel baking gives them a more concentrated flavor. Get them out. Peel them, and puree them with the green chillies. In a pan add a little oil, add chopped ginger & garlic. Once roasted, add the tomato puree. Add salt. Heat for about 5 minutes. Garnish with cilantro.

Assembling the Momo's
After the dough has rested for half an hour, knead it again for about a minute. Then make small little balls out of it. Probably half the size of a poori ball. Roll it thin (as thin as a wonton wrapper). Make sure the edges are thinner than the center. This is very important.

Once rolled out, keep about 1 tsp full of the filling at its center. Wet the edges with a little water, and then seal shut (half moon shape). You could also close them like you close paranthas before rolling them out, like a little pouch. The key thing is that it better be sealed. You dont want all your filling pouring out of it mid way through steaming.

Make sure to keep them under a damp cloth as you go to the next one. Make your husbands part of the assembly line ladies , or else you'll take forever.

Once you are done, grease your idli maker. Make sure to grease it well. You dont want your momo's sticking to the idli stand and tearing open. I placed a cabbage leaf so that I didnt have to use too much oil.

Steam for about 10 minutes.

Thats it! All done. Enjoy with the spicy tomato achaar.

You could also pan roast them once they are cooked, or deep fry them.

Enjoy!