Flavor is king at Nepalese eatery with broad Himalayan menu
 |
|
The chili chicken is cooked with green peppers, onions and tomatoes. Bidisha Bagchi / For China Daily |
 |
 |
Set up in a single level building, the decor is uniquely Nepalese, with photos, banners and artifacts from the country. Tucked away in one quiet corner of Dongchang Road, near Pudong South Road, the restaurant has two names, Nizang (Chinese) and Himalaya (Nepalese). The restaurant also has its own little brewery from where it serves beer and fruit beer.
Like all Asian food, Nepali cuisine has its regional variations with its simple and subtle flavors, and it's much influenced by its neighbors, China and India. The blend of common ingredients and spices like onion-garlic-ginger and cumin-coriander-turmeric, and some unique Himalayan herbs like timur and jimbu adds to the uniqueness of this cuisine.
From the long list of starters, soups and salads, we liked the samosas and spring rolls - and the Nizang salad with poached mutton and colorful mixed vegetables was a treat for the eyes and the taste buds.
We ordered two tasty "chili" preparations: boneless chunks of chicken marinated in soy sauce and cooked with green peppers, onions and tomatoes; and diced potatoes (aloo) deep-fried in batter and cooked with peppers, onion and garlic. In Nepal, the potato dish is made with boiled potato wedges that are deep-fried.
There is one combination meal that has characterized the country's cuisine: a simple meal combo of rice, lentils and seasonal vegetables - popularly called the daal, tarkari and bhaat. Daal is a very light lentil soup, sauteed with cumin seeds or onions; bhaat is starch-free plain white rice and tarkari is the generic name for the vegetable curry that is prepared with seasonal vegetables. Momo, another famed food - a Nepalese version of dumplings - surprisingly did not appear on the menu.
