Newar food and yomari in Chainpur

Newar families came to Chainpur as traders and craftspeople, and they brought their food and festivals from the Kathmandu Valley. The best-known is yomari, a steamed rice-flour dumpling with a sweet filling of molasses and sesame, made for Yomari Punhi, the full moon of Mangsir, which marks the end of the rice harvest. In Newar homes it is offered to the gods before it is eaten.

We arrange a session with a family in the bazaar. You help mix the dough and shape the dumplings, which takes practice: the pointed, fig-like shape is harder than it looks. While they steam, you learn about the other dishes on the table, such as beaten rice, spiced meat or soybeans, and pickles. The family talks about keeping Newar customs and language alive far from the Valley.

If you visit at Yomari Punhi itself, you will see the dumplings in many homes and may be offered them as you walk the bazaar. At other times we arrange it with notice, and the family makes a small batch especially. The session takes about two hours and ends with eating what you have made, hot, with tea. We pay the family directly for ingredients and their time.