Samay baji

Nepalese foods and traditions are unique because Nepal was closed to the outside world for centuries. Due to this, the Nepalese food had a minimum influence by foreign ingredients. Only after 1950 A.D, Nepal opened its borders for the outside world and thus, the Nepalese food got influenced by the Indian, Tibetan and Chinese cooking traditions. Thankfully, the indigenous Newars of Kathmandu valley have preserved their authentic cuisines that have been left uninfluenced. One such cuisine is the Samay Baji which is a set of dishes representing the five elements (Space, Earth, Water, Fire and Metal) and labeled as the pure food of the gods. It is served with Aila or Thwon, the common liquors that Newars make at home. What makes this traditional dish so popular is the range of varieties on offer. This particular cuisine reminds of an old Newari song that goes, ‘Laa Chaku Wayka Samay Baji, Walla Walla PuluKishi’, which literally means, serve us Samay Baji with a piece of meat as here comes the white elephant. This song has been passed on from generations to generations and is specially sung through the streets during the Newari festival of Indra Jatra in old Kathmandu . As they labor hard to pull the chariot of the god, these words are sung in anticipation of the feasting that will take place after to mark the end of the festival. The Newars are cultural standouts when it comes to feasting. Diversity is their hallmark and feasting is their passion. Their food cultures are rich and varied, though the rest of the world have yet to taste it. As the feast concludes, the Newars get back to their hearths with heavy hearts – the sight and sounds of the celebration still imposed in their minds, for they wish that the night would last forever. A stomach filled with Samay Baji and the mind filled with Aila, the tired citizens of this ancient city drift away into a peaceful slumber in the full moon night, dreaming of gods and heaven, still singing and dancing cuisines in Nepal.