Tibetan Beef Momos

2 hours 0 mins Prep Time

10 mins Cook Time

Written By

Robin Winship

There are plenty of places to grab Tibetan momos in Toronto these days -- Parkdale even has its own area dubbed Little Tibet brimming with snug spots to get these delicious dumplings. Native to Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal and North India, momos are steamed dumplings with heavy influences from Indian cuisine and typically contain Indian spices. Minced meat is commonly used, such as goat, yak, pork or buffalo, and various vegetables and herbs. Served with Tibetan hot sauce known as sepen, these beef momos are a bit of a project but worth the effort. If you do not feel like making your own dumpling wrappers, you can always opt for store-bought ones.

Ingredients

Momo Wrappers

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
3/4 cup warm water
1/2 teaspoon fine salt

Filling

1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup white onion, minced
2 teaspoons ginger, minced
4 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons cilantro, roughly chopped
Black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon neutral oil
1/2 teaspoon garam masala

Sepen (Tibetan Hot Sauce)

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 vine-ripened tomatoes
4 red chilis
2"-inch knob ginger, roughly chopped
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns
1 tablespoon neutral oil
3 tablespoons cilantro, roughly chopped

Directions

Momo Wrappers

8 Steps

Step 1

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk flour and salt together. Create a well in the middle of the flour.
Step 2

Slowly pour warm water into the well, whisking flour from sides into the well with a fork until liquid is absorbed and a shaggy dough is formed.
Step 3

Turn out onto a clean surface and knead for 8 minutes, until dough is very smooth.
Step 4

Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
Step 5

Divide dough into 4 sections.
Step 6

On a floured work surface, roll out one of the sections into a large rectangle, about 1/8th of an inch thick (thin but not to the point where it will tear). Using a circle cutter or something similar that measures around 5" in diameter, cut dough into circles.
Step 7

Repeat with three remaining dough sections, dusting wrappers with flour and stacking them on top of one another, separated by parchment paper. Set aside in fridge until ready to use.
Step 8

It is not advisable but you can re-roll your scraps and cut again (I did this and wrappers turned out fine).

Filling

1 Steps

Step 1

Mix all filling ingredients thoroughly in a medium-sized bowl and let sit in fridge for 30 minutes covered so flavours develop fully.

Sepen (Tibetan Hot Sauce)

5 Steps

Step 1

Set up an ice bath next to your stove by filling a medium-sized bowl with cold water and ice. Bring a medium pot filled halfway full of water to a boil. Add two vine-ripened tomatoes and 4 chilis to water. After about 45 seconds (skins of tomatoes should just be visibly peeling) remove tomatoes from water and continue to cook chilis for an additional 60 seconds, remove chilis to ice bath. Keep the water from the pot.
Step 2

Peel skin from tomatoes and discard. Remove stems from chilis and discard. Place tomatoes and chilis in a blender.
Step 3

In a dry frying pan over medium-high heat, toast Sichuan peppercorns until fragrant (roughly 1 minute and 30 seconds). Remove from heat and grind finely with a mortar and pestle. Add ground Sichuan to blender.
Step 4

Add the rest of the ingredients for the sepen to the blender, and pulse. Pour a small amount (1-2 tablespoons) of the water you used to blanch tomatoes and pulse again. Consistency of sauce should be smooth but not too liquidy.
Step 5

Pour hot sauce into a small bowl and set aside.

Assembly

6 Steps

Step 1

Spoon a small amount of filling into the centre of each momo wrapper and shape (keep wrappers covered to avoid them from drying out).
Step 2

There are plenty of ways to shape your momos, I recommend watching a few tutorials on how to shape them.
Step 3

Keep dumplings on a large plate or sheet tray covered with plastic wrap. If not cooking immediately can store in the fridge or can place sheet tray in freezer until dumplings are frozen and then remove them into freezer bags to store.
Step 4

Either steam or pan-fry dumplings depending on your preference.
Step 5

Steam: Fill a pot a quarter of the way full with cold water, place bamboo steamer so it is resting on rim of pot. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Grease slats of steamer with neutral oil and then place dumplings inside, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until cooked through.
Step 6

Serve with sepen, soy sauce or whatever other chili sauce you may have on hand.