Momos

Momos are Tibetan dumplings. It takes a little practice to make the beautiful crimped edges. No matter how it ends up looking, it will be delicious!

DOUGH:
3 c. flour (white or wheat)
≈ 1 c. water
¼ tsp. salt

FILLINS:
1 tbs. oil (canola or olive)
¾ lb. tofu
1 c. frozen/canned corn
1 c. cooked/canned chickpeas
½ bunch of kale, chopped into bite-sized pieces
½ tsp. tumeric
1 tbs. grated ginger (or 1 tsp. powdered)
salt or tamari to taste

SAUCE:
2 tbs. olive oil
2 c. chopped tomatoes or chunky tomato sauce
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. tumeric
1 tsp. cumin seeds
a pinch of cayenne
salt and pepper to taste

THE DOUGH:
The dough for momos is surprisingly simple. Just put the flour and salt in a bowl and
slowly add water until the dough forms a cohesive ball. No yeast and no hassle!

THE FILLINS:
The fillin’ is more of an art and less of a science. Sauté the tofu and veggies in the
oil and then add the spices. Some flexibility in fillins is encouraged – just be careful
not to allow your fillins to get too saucy, because it’ll make the assembling process
significantly more messy!

THE SAUCE:
The sauce is where the flavor is at. Start by heating the oil, adding the cumin seeds,
and cooking for about a minute and a half. Add the garlic and let it cook for a minute
or so before adding the tomatoes or tomato sauce and the remaining spices into the
concoction.

THE ASSEMBLAGE:
This is the fun part! Pinch off a golf ball-sized piece of dough and roll it in your hands
until it’s a smooth sphere. Use a rolling pin to roll into a 3-4 inch circle. Make sure
to use lots of flower on your surface and rolling pin to avoid stickage! Hold the rolled
out dough in one hand taco style, while scooping with the other hand two heaping
spoonfuls of fillin into the middle of the dough. With the scooping hand, wet your
fingers with water and trace half way around the edge of the dough. Fold the other
half over the fillins. While still holding the dough taco style, use your free hand to
fold a small section of one side of the dough over, crimping it over and sealing that
section.

Make a crimp every quarter inch, until the whole momo is sealed. Finally, dip your
fingertips in water and smooth the closure over. Your momo is assembled!

THE COOKIN’:
You can use a simple vegetable steamer to steam your momos. Just brush the
bottom and sides of the upper part of the steamer with some oil and place your
momos inside. Within 7-10 minutes, your momos are steamed and ready to eat!