Sikkim is a beautiful and serene place having great dishes. The food is adopted from Tibet and Nepal. Sikkim’s wonderful cuisine has a mix of health and taste. From thukpa to momos, every dish is simple and full of flavors.
Here is a list of 20 dishes that you must try in Gangtok:
1 Sel Roti
Sel Roti is a traditional Nepali handmade, round shaped bread. It is different from other bread that you tasted. It is usually prepared during the important festivals in Gangtok which is exchanged among each other as a token of love. It is a puffed up doughnut having a crispy texture at joints. It is mostly available many traditional restaurants in the State.
2 Thenthuk
Thenthuk is popular Sikkimese street food available in many restaurants in the city. It is a healthy Tibetan dish popular throughout Sikkim. It is noodle soup consisting of chicken, mutton, wheat, or vegetables. When chili flakes are added, the soup is made spicier.
3 Thukpa
Thukpa is a popular fast food popular among tourists and locals in Sikkim. It is a noodle soup originated from Tibet, and due to the addition of spices, the flavor becomes different. It is healthy food for both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The vegetables added depend upon a particular season, but the ingredients used are fresh where the vegetables are grown organically. This dish is found in heritage restaurants and fast food counters.
4 Phagshapa
Phagshapa is a traditional dish of Sikkim. It is a nonvegetarian dish constituting chili, radish, and pork as its main ingredients. It is popular street food available throughout the state and tastes best when served with Rice or Chapati. It is preferred during summers because of its texture. The dish has a lot of proteins, vegetables, and no oil. It is a common delicacy for health-conscious.
5 Chhurpi Soup
Chhurpi Soup is a popular dish served at almost every restaurant in Sikkim. It is a soup made from cotton cheese and is one of the most liked dishes by the visitors. It can be mixed with other vegetables depending on your taste. It can be combined with panchphoran and coriander leaves to enhance the taste.
6 Sha Phaley
Sha Phaley is another popular street food whose aroma lingers in the streets of Gangtok. It is a perfect dish for people who love meat, bread, and fried food. They are semi-circle fried bread having stuffing of meat, cabbage, and onion. A popular restaurant called ‘Roll House’ serves unique Sha Phaley where it has a stuffing of cheese giving it a pizza theme.
7 Momos
Who doesn’t love momos? Momos and Sikkim are complementary to each other. They serve the best momos you will ever taste in your life. They have a filling of ground meat, but other varieties too.
8 Gundruk
Gundruk originates from Nepal and is a leafy dish. It is vegan and good for health. Since it is a leafy vegetable, it is made from radish to cabbage leaves. Sometimes, mustard leaves are also used. It is rich in roughage and boosts the metabolism of the body. Traditionally, it is made in an earthen pot.
9 Sinki
Preparation of Sinki is similar to Gundruk. It is made from tap roots of radish. These roots are chopped and put into bamboo and pressed with straw. It is covered with mud and vegetation for a month, and the bacteria do all the work. It stays fresh for a year and used in soups and stews. It can also be used as a pickle and eaten with paranthas.
10 Kinema
Kinema is a popular food used as a substitute for meat along with rice. It is a fermented soybean food which doesn’t require much preparation to present it as a tempting curry.
11 Chambray
Chambray originates from Nepal prepared from various local varieties of rice. This dish can be served as Pulao. It tastes best with Tilko Aloo.
12 Sishnu
Sishnu soup, also known as edible nettle leaves originates from Nepal. It is served with rice. In this dish, nettle leaves are boiled with garlic flakes and other flavors to get a rich taste of the soup.
13 Chaang
Chaang is a fermented cereal based alcoholic beverage. It is sipped from a bamboo receptacle using a thin bamboo pipe. The bamboo receptacle has millet which is topped with warm water until the millet loses its flavor. It is a nice accompaniment to any dish.
14 Chhurpi Ningro Curry
Chhurpi Ningro Curry is a popular curry made from a bamboo shoot and cottage cheese. Spices like chili, ningro, and turmeric enhance the flavor and spiciness to the dish.
15 Masauyra Curry
Masauyra Curry is similar to the Punjabi famous Wari. It hails from the Nepalese cuisine and is regarded as the popular local dish of Sikkim. It looks like a ball and the main ingredient that forms the curry is fermented Black gram.
16 Kodo Ko Roti
Kodo Ko Roti is a local Nepali cuisine adopted by Sikkim. This dish is usually accompanied by Tomato Pickle. The main ingredient is Finger millet, which is also used to make this pancake. It is also served with a variety of pickles.
17 Sikkim’s Tea
Sikkim Tea is a famous tea as it uses tea leaves from Temi tea garden in Sikkim. They are served in traditional cups to draw attention among local dishes.
18 Shimi Ko Achar
Shimi Ko Achar is a popular dish made from String Bean. It is a local vegetable called Shimi. Sesame seeds are also used to enhance their flavor. Green chilies are also added to increase the spiciness of the pickle while the lemon juice is added to increase the sourness.
19 Jaanr
Jaanr is a local traditional Sikkimese beverage. Other varieties like Makai koJaanr, Simal Tarulko Jaanr, Bhaate Jaanr, and Jahun ko Jaanr are also available as they use ingredients like maize, barley, cassava root, and wheat.
20 Mesu
Mesu is a delicious curry loved by the people of Sikkim. The bamboo root is a core ingredient. It is another form of pickle made from a fermented bamboo shoot with pork. The taste is acidic and sour.
