Easy Nepali Momos Recipe

Vegan Steamed Dumplings

These vegan momos were inspired by a visit to Tara’s Himalayan Cuisine, a small restaurant in my Los Angeles neighborhood. I have never met a dumpling I didn’t like, but Tara’s momos may be the best dumplings I have ever tasted—and I immediately wanted to create an approachable version at home.

Filled with creamy tofu, vegetables, and savory spices, these steamed dumplings look impressive enough to serve guests. Store-bought wrappers make them surprisingly easy to prepare, even if you’ve never made dumplings before. They’re exactly the kind of flavorful recipe I love serving to anyone who still thinks vegan food has to be bland.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Impressive but easy: These momos look like a special restaurant appetizer, but store-bought wrappers make them easy enough for any home cook to make.

• Full of savory flavor: Ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, turmeric, and cayenne transform the tofu and vegetables into a warm, aromatic, and creamy filling.

• A fun party appetizer: The individual dumplings are easy to serve, and the folding process makes them feel much fancier than the effort required. They are unique and most certainly are not another boring vegetable platter.

• Perfect for dipping: Serve them with chili sauce for an appetizer that is spicy, savory, and a little sweet.

Cat’s Tips

Use store-bought wrappers. Wonton wrappers work beautifully for these momos and are available in many supermarkets. I prefer buying mine from the small, locally-owned Asian market in my neighborhood. Traditional momos are made with homemade dough, and there are plenty of recipes that will teach you how to make it. Dough can be tricky and frustrating, though, and I want you to feel successful making these at home.

Keep the filling cool and fairly dry. Allow the cooked filling to cool completely before assembling the momos, and avoid adding too much filling to each wrapper. Warm or overly wet filling can soften the wrappers and cause them to tear.

Be creative with the vegetables. I used my favorite combination, but you can easily change the filling. Cabbage and carrots would work well in place of the broccoli. For fall, I think cooked butternut squash would be wonderful.

Fresh ginger can be tough to work with! If you can find it, stores sell ginger in a jar already minced. This saves time but if you use it be sure you get one without added sugar.

Serving Suggestions

These momos have enough flavor to serve on their own, but I also love offering a store-bought chili sauce for dipping. Arrange them on a platter with the sauce in the center for an easy but impressive party appetizer. A savory chili-garlic sauce will add heat, while sweet chili sauce gives them a sweeter, milder finish.

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Easy Nepali Momos Recipe

Yield: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1/2 yellow onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 cups chopped broccoli (chopped very small)
• 1/2 block soft tofu (I use a 10-14 ounce block)
• 1 cup kale
• 1-12 ounce package wonton wrappers
• Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids or Tamari or Soy Sauce

Instructions

To Prepare the Filling

1. Dice one half of a yellow onion. Be sure to remove the outer skin and tough ends.
2. Add 1 tablespoon of refined coconut oil to a saute pan.
3. Saute the onion in the coconut oil until it is translucent.
4. You can chop the remaining vegetables up while the onion is sauteing or cut everything up ahead of time. (if you are new to cooking chopping first makes sense)
5. Chop or mince 3 cloves of garlic.
6. Peel a 1 inch piece of fresh ginger and chop it into small pieces. You can also grate the ginger if that is easier.
7. Chop up two cups of fresh broccoli into tiny pieces. Remove the florets from the stems then cut the florets into tiny pieces.
8. Finely chop 1 cup of kale.
9. Chop the block of tofu into small cubes about 1/2 inch or 1 cm in size.
10. Once the onion is translucent, add the minced garlic to your saute pan and saute until fragrant (about 30 seconds)
11. Add in the minced ginger and stir the broccoli, ginger, and garlic together.
12. Add in your spices (1 teaspoon coriander, 1 teaspoon cumin,1/2 teaspoon turmeric, and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne) and stir to coat so all the spices are combined with the oil garlic and ginger. Stir and cook for about 30 seconds, this will bring out the flavors of the spices.
13. Add the chopped broccoli to the saute pan.
14. Add the chopped kale, mix and let the broccoli and kale cook stirring occasionally for about 3-5 minutes until the kale is wilted and the broccoli is bright green.
15. Add in the chopped tofu cubes and stir gently just until the tofu is coated with the spices.
16. Let the vegetable tofu mixture cook until the filling is dry, you don't want to fill the momos with wet filling. You also don't want the aromatic spices stuck to the pan, adding the broccoli and kale should prevent that but if the spices stick add a small amount of water with the tofu, stir to coat, then let the filling cook until it is dry.
17. Once your filling is cooked, (the vegetables will be bright and tender) sprinkle the entire mixture with Tamari/Soy Sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids.
18. TASTE the filling and add more salt or Soy Sauce if needed. Remove the filling and let it cool.

Filling the Momos

1. Open the package of wonton wrappers and cover with a damp paper towel or damp kitchen towel.
2. Prepare a small bowl of water to dip your fingers in. This will be used to help seal the momos.
3. Pull one wrapper off the stack of wrappers and place on a piece of parchment paper or on a plate.
4. Put about 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of the wonton wrapper.
5. Moisten the edges of the wrapper by dipping your fingers in the bowl of water and running them along the edges of the wonton wrappers.
6. Fold the wrapper over to make a triangle shape. Be sure to seal the edges by putting firm pressure on them. Draw the two corners back towards each other and pinch to seal.
7. If you would like more instruction on how to fold the momos please watch the YouTube video here or you can watch other YouTube videos as there are a variety of folding methods to make the momos look prettier!
8. Prepare your bamboo steamer basket by lining it with parchment paper or cabbage leaves. If you use parchment make sure to make slits in it to allow steam to rise through the steamer. *If you don't have a steamer basket you can use a stainless steal vegetable steamer - just spray it with oil to prevent sticking.
9. Place the momos in your steamer in a single layer. Steam the momos for about 10 minutes until they are translucent.
10. I serve these warm and plain without dipping sauce, however a store bought garlic, chili dipping sauce goes great with theses, as does a simple soy sauce based dipping sauce. If you want to make a quick dipping sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili flakes, and sesame oil make a quick easy dipping sauce.
11. Enjoy!