Non-vegetarian or not, who doesn’t love food. And if you are travelling to place that has no unique and tasty delicacies for you to try, it’s like summer without sunshine or monsoon without rain!
If you happen to be a vegan or a vegetarian travelling to Nepal, you need not worry about rejuvenating your energy for the day. In fact you will find many new dishes to taste here. The Nepali culture is very familiar with vegetarianism.
Veganism, however, is a recent concept and isn’t so popular. But, as a vegan you will find a lot of things to eat in Nepal. Recently, a couple of new reentrants that serve vegan food have opened up.
What can I eat?
Almost every restaurants within the city serves vegetarian and vegan food. The most nutritional and filling meal for a vegetarian/vegan is Dal-Bhaat-Tarkari. This authentic Nepali dish is rice served with vegetable curries, lentils, salad, and tomato chutney. The meal is high in nutritional composition and will be more than enough to fuel you up for the day.
If you are tired of the regular Dal-Bhaat, there are several foods in Nepal that must try, veg-momo being the most popular one. You will find every cuisine available without the use of meat if you order for it.
There are some famous Nepali delicacies you must try…
For vegetarians or vegans
- Kafseh– Tibetan Snack
- Veg-Chatamari– rice crepe with vegetable toppings, also known as Nepali Pizza.
- Yomari– an external covering of rice flour stuffed with sweet Chaku (caramelize sugarcane juice)
- Titaura – snack made out of fruits available as sweet, sour, spicy or a combination of all three
Only for vegetarians
- Jerry-swari– sweet dish generally eaten for breakfast
- Pushtakari- sweets
- Lassi – beaten curd with water
- Jhu Jhu Dhau – special type of curd
You can also purchase seasonal fruits from any local stores.
The most popular cuisine for pure-vegetarians is Indian Cuisine served by authentic Indian restaurants the most popular one being Angaan. Being in Nepal, you can try explicit Indian food; Dosa, Idle Sambar, Paneer Tikka, Wada, Chole-Bature being the most famous ones.
Note for the vegans: Most Indian dishes use curd to ferment their batter. Inquire with the restaurant authorities to differentiate dishes that have been made using dairy products.
The Indian Thali is another nutritional dishes served with rice, roti (Indian bread), lentil, vegetable curry, Paneer curry (Indian Cheese), Papad, Salad and Indian Desert. As a vegan, you can ask to replace the Indian cheese with some other curry that is devoid of dairy.
The Indian desert is a must to try. None of the Indian sweets contain eggs. Almost all of them are made out of dairy and other ingredients fit for vegetarians. For a vegan, only a few Indian sweets are devoid of dairy. Inquire before you buy one.
Special Guidelines for a Vegan
Vegan diet is not very famous in Nepal. However you will find several restaurants that serve food for vegans. Two of the most popular restaurants for vegetarians and vegans are OR2K and Places Restaurant Bars situated in Thamel.
Before consuming anything, ask if it contains dairy. As mentioned earlier, a lot of dishes are made out of dairy used for fermenting.
Nutritional Supplements
The food available for a vegetarian/vegan is very healthy and high in nutrition. You can consume pulses, soyabeans, and corn for protein supplements.
However, due to sudden change in diet, you might notice signs of weakness. If at all you fall a victim of such subject, consult a doctor and get subscription to some medicinal supplements. You can even bring along your supplements from your hometown.
Conclusion
You need not worry about if you are a vegetarian or a vegan travelling to Nepal. You will find several dishes that will fit your limited diet. In fact Nepal is one of those countries where in you will get to try some unique vegetarian and vegan dishes.
Since Sikkim (India) and Nepal share a common border lot of travellers visiting Nepal also go and spend some time in Sikkim: both places share common culture and religion, both places have similar climate and food. Well worth check Sikkim out.
I’m a vegetarian traveller from Nepal. I love adventure sports, trekking and food, and I write about them in my travel blog – Trek Route. You can also reach me via Twitter and Facebook.
A Great Post!!
Super awesome post with great title. While we gonna rich high altitude area it is better to use vegetable foods than Non veg.
Great tip, and good to know. Thank you.
Amazing Post with such detailed information.