Kholak (ngamphe with butter tea)
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Roasted barley flour (ngamphe, or tsampa) kneaded with butter tea into a quick, filling dough.
Region: LadakhOccasion: Breakfast; food for herders and travellersTime: 10 minServes: 2Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 cup ngamphe (roasted barley flour)
- 1 cup hot gur gur cha (butter tea)
- 1 tsp butter
- A pinch of sugar or a little chhurpe (dried cheese), optional
Method
- Pour a little butter tea into a bowl and add the butter.
- Add the barley flour on top.
- Mix with the fingers, turning the bowl, adding a little more tea until the flour forms a soft dough.
- Knead into small balls and eat them with more butter tea.
History
Roasted barley flour, ngamphe, has been the staple food of Ladakh for centuries, as barley is the main grain of its high villages.
Significance
Ngamphe needs no further cooking, so herders and travellers carry it. A little is also offered at shrines and in rituals during Losar.