Yomari
योमरी
Newar rice-flour dumplings shaped like elongated figs and filled with sweet molasses and sesame. The name is commonly interpreted in Newar as a food that is liked or enjoyed. They are central to Yomari Punhi celebrations.
About this dish
Yomari is a rice-flour sweet from the Newar food tradition of Nepal. Its distinctive pointed shape and molasses-and-sesame filling are associated with Yomari Punhi, a celebration linked to the rice harvest.
Recipe
Newari chaku and sesame yomari
Dough
- 250 g fine plain rice flour
- 250-300 ml boiling water
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp ghee
Filling
- 150 g chaku or jaggery, chopped
- 40 g toasted white sesame seeds, lightly crushed
- 20 g grated coconut
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1
Filling: 150 g chaku or jaggery, chopped; 40 g toasted white sesame seeds, lightly crushed; 20 g grated coconut; plus the remaining ingredients listed for this component. Warm filling ghee and jaggery gently until melted; stir in sesame, coconut and cardamom. Cool to a soft, scoopable paste. Stir over low heat so jaggery melts without scorching; cool until scoopable, not runny.
- 2
Dough: 250 g fine plain rice flour; 250-300 ml boiling water; 1/4 tsp salt; plus the remaining ingredients listed for this component. Mix rice flour and salt. Add 250 ml boiling water and dough ghee; stir, cover 5 minutes and knead while warm. Add more hot water a teaspoon at a time if it cracks. Stir with a spoon before touching boiling-water dough. Knead warm, add final water only for cracks and keep covered.
- 3
Divide into 12. With damp fingers, make each into a deep hollow cone with a thick base. Add an equal share of filling, close the mouth and pinch to a pointed fig-like shape. Thin walls gradually with damp fingers, keep filling below rim and pinch the opening completely closed.
- 4
Steam on a greased lining over boiling water 15-20 minutes, until rice dough is cooked through. Rest a few minutes before serving. Time from steady steam and check a tender shell without chalky rice flour. Let molten jaggery cool slightly before biting.
Note
Use plain rice flour rather than glutinous rice flour. The warm dough should bend without cracking; avoid boiling the jaggery into hard candy.