Tibetan Tsampa

Tibetan Tsampa

　　Tsampa is the staple food of the Tibetan people. Tibetans eat tsampa with all three meals a day. Although the name sounds unfamiliar, tsampa is essentially roasted barley flour. It is made from roasted, finely ground highland barley that is not sifted, resembling the fried flour eaten in northern China. However, while the flour in northern China is ground before roasting, Tibetan tsampa is roasted before grinding and is not dehulled.

To eat tsampa, place some butter in a bowl, pour in tea, add the roasted barley flour, and mix with your hands. When mixing, first press the flour gently to the bottom of the bowl with your middle finger to prevent the tea from spilling out. Then rotate the bowl and press the flour into the tea with your fingers along the rim. Once the flour, tea, and butter are evenly mixed and can be formed into a dough-like ball with your hands, it is ready to eat. While eating, keep stirring and kneading the mixture in the bowl with your hands to form balls, which are then brought to your mouth. Tibetans generally do not use chopsticks or spoons when eating — they eat with their hands. This way of eating is similar to how Indians eat rice with their hands, known as "hand rice."

Because tsampa is simple to eat and easy to carry, it is well suited to a nomadic lifestyle. When herders go on long trips, they often carry a pouch of tsampa around their waists. When hungry, they simply grab a handful of tsampa to eat. Sometimes, they take out a wooden bowl, scoop in some tsampa, pour in a bit of butter tea and salt, stir a few times, and eat it right away. Other times, they eat tsampa while drinking butter tea. Sometimes, they pour the tsampa into a leather pouch called a “tanggu,” add butter tea, hold the opening of the bag with one hand, and pinch and knead the mixture inside the bag with the other. In no time, the fragrant tsampa is ready to be eaten.

During the Tibetan New Year, every household places a ceremonial wooden container called a “zhuosuqima” on their Tibetan-style cabinet. The container is filled with highland barley, roasted highland barley flour, and “zhuoma” (ginseng fruit), and is decorated with ears of highland barley, wheat flower arrangements, and a colorful ornament called “zizhuo,” which features sun, moon, and star patterns. When neighbors or relatives come to visit during the New Year, the host will offer the “zhuosuqima.” The guests take a little tsampa, sprinkle it into the air three times, then take another bit and put it in their mouth, followed by the blessing “Tashi Delek” (meaning “good luck and prosperity”).