The exquisite dishes of Bhutan's national cuisine will enrich your travel experience in this amazing country. What kind of food and drinks should definitely try?
1. "Ema datshi"
This is the most famous dish of Bhutanese cuisine, which becomes one of the main ones in almost every meal. Prepare it from chili and cheese peppers: "ema" means chili, and "datshi" means cheese. In Bhutan, many chili and cheese peppers are used in their dishes.
Cheese is made from milk cows and yaks. Fat is removed from the cheese mass to make butter, and the remaining cottage cheese without fat is used to make cheese. The watery liquid remaining from the cheese making process is used as a soup and is added to the rice. No part of the curd is lost.
The dish is served in several versions, with green beans, fern shoots and mushrooms. A sample of this dish is presented in the restaurant of the National Museum of National Heritage in Thimphu.
2. Yak yak
They say if you try yak meat, be sure to come back. Deliciously sweet and slightly spicy red meat, juicier than buffalo and moose meat. It is a source of lean protein and natural oils.
Meat dishes are always accompanied by rice, which forms the bulk of most Bhutanese dishes. Different vegetables are served as a side dish, especially spinach, pumpkin, turnip, radish, green beans.
3. Red rice
This is a special type of rice that has a red color due to the content of anthocyanin. It has nutty taste and high nutritional value.
Red rice is grown for thousands of years in the fertile soil of the Paro Valley, and is irrigated with thousands of years of glacial water, rich in trace elements. This rice is prepared with mushrooms and hot pepper, and also used in desserts.
4. "Momos"
These are vareniki, inherited from Tibetan cuisine. They are stuffed with pork, beef or cabbage with cheese. This dish is for special occasions and is a Bhutanese favorite.
5. "Phaksha Paa"
Pork cooked with spicy red chili pepper, radish or spinach. It is served with buckwheat vareniki with green turnips, datshi( cheese) and mushrooms.
6. Bhutan's drinks
Chasuima is a favorite local drink. It is made from tea leaves, yak oil, water and salt. It tastes more like butter than tea.
Bhutanese local beer. Especially popular are two varieties: white, softer "Druk" and stronger "Druk 1000".In Bhutan there is no own factory for bottling beer, so the foamy drink is sold in Indian bottles with the inscription "Kingfisher".
Arag is a traditional alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice. The liquid is transparent like vodka, has a strong smell and taste.