At a lapate bhoye, all the guests sit on long, narrow straw mats (sukuls) facing each other. A lapate (leaf plate) is placed before each guest, accompanied by a pala (small clay bowl). The eldest are served first, and the feast begins with two handfuls of baji (beaten rice) followed by curries like gainda gudi (a mix of different lentils), hariyo saag (green spinach), and alu tama (curry of potatoes and bamboo shoots). Alu tama has a unique aroma and you’ll surely love its taste. Spicy achaar (pickles) follow: alu kerau is a spicy mixture of radish, potatoes, and green and small brown peas, and tamatar ko achaar which is a ripe tomato pickle. Now that the groundwork has been prepared, the buffalo meat curry is served and the guests will start eating. The feast is on.
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More dishes follow in succession. These include a selection of a dozen or so tasty morsels of meat from different parts of the animal. Hakuchoila (broiled spiced ground meat), senla mu (liver that’s steamed and then sautéed), swanpuka (lungs stuffed and fried), bhuttan (fried intestine and other abdominal parts), and mainh (fried pieces of tongue) are some of the tongue tingling dishes that you might be served. While these delectable tidbits are being served, someone else will be busy pouring aila (homemade liquor) into your pala.
The next item on the menu is something called chhuse musse that is a mix of raw carrot, radish, cucumber, onion, and tomato slices, and soaked peas. Towards the end of the feast, a handful of beaten rice is again served, followed by yogurt and some sweetmeats. The yogurt served at such feasts will probably be from Bhaktapur, known famously as juju dhau (king curd). It is really delicious yogurt. That’s dessert and signifies the end of the lapate bhoye.
Here are some more popular Nepali foods that you can try.
Thenthuk: A broth consisting different kinds of vegatables, meat and dough.
Yomari: A popular festive dish of steamed bread with various kinds of fillings like chaaku, khuwa or even ground meat.
Maas ko Bara: Lentil patties or flat pancakes topped with ground meat and egg.
Taas: Popular dish in Terai region, spicy fried mutton served with bhuja (puffed rice), pickles and green salad.
Kinima: It is fermented and dried soyabean, famous in eastern hilly region.
Sekuwa: It is barbequed spicy meat; especially Bajeko Sekuwa is famous.
Ghonghi: Snail dish is common food of Tharu community in Terai region.
Khapse: Crisp biscuit-like snack made from flour, ghee, water, and milk (optional) made by people in mountain region, especially in Lhosar (new year) but is easily available in Buddhists area and stores.
Suji ko haluwa: It is almost like dhido but made of semolina and is kind of sweet. Some dried fruits are also added.
Tingmo: Tingmo or Tibetan momos are steamed and porous bread.
Juju Dhau: Juju dhau is newari for king curd, made from buffalo milk and sweetened with honey is the most famous curd in Kathmandu.
Kheer: A kind of porridge, which is mostly consumed as dessert. It is made of made of rice boiled in milk with sugar and dried fruits.
Khalpi: fermented pickle made from mature cucumber.
Yak Cheese: Cheese made from yak’s milk in the Himalayan region.
Khuwa: Reduced and thickened milk, which is used as filling in Yomari and Momo, also Khuwa Kulfi (a popsicle made of Khuwa).
Pustakari: Traditional Nepali sweet or candy made from sugar, khuwa, peanut powder and coconut powder.
Pau/Titaura: Famous treats usually made with fruits that vary from sweet, salty, sour to hot and spicy.
Chhurpi: Hardened cheese, also known as durkha is Himalayan treat.
Nepali foods are tasty and flavorsome that delight your taste buds and so are Nepali drinks. Nepal produces both tea and coffee and most Nepalese love to drink tea or coffee in the morning and afternoon. You can find wide arrays of tea and coffee-based drinks.