Hand-pulled or store-bought wheat noodles in a spiced vegetable or chicken broth with vegetables — the warming noodle soup of the Himalayan region eaten across Sikkim, Darjeeling and the Bhutia communities. A complete meal in a bowl.
Ingredients
200 g wheat noodles (any thick wheat noodle or egg noodle — cook separately as per packet instructions)
300 g chicken — bone-in pieces (or use vegetables for a vegetarian version)
4 cups water for the broth
1 tbsp oil
1 onion — finely chopped
4 garlic cloves — minced
1 inch ginger — grated
2 tomatoes — finely chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 carrot — sliced thin
1 cup cabbage — roughly shredded
2 spring onions — sliced for garnish
salt to taste
1 tsp soy sauce (optional)
fresh coriander leaves for garnish
Method
Cook the noodles separately: Cook the wheat noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Drizzle a few drops of oil to prevent sticking. Keep aside.
Prepare the broth: In a large pot heat 1 tbsp oil on medium. Add minced garlic and grated ginger. Fry for 30 seconds.
Add tomatoes: Add chopped tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes until soft.
Add spice powders: Turn to low. Add turmeric, red chilli powder and coriander powder. Stir 1 minute.
Add chicken and water: Add chicken pieces. Stir to coat with the spiced tomato. Add 4 cups water and salt. Bring to a boil.
Simmer until chicken is cooked: Reduce heat. Simmer covered for 20 minutes until chicken is completely cooked through.
Add vegetables: Add sliced carrot and shredded cabbage to the simmering broth. Add soy sauce if using. Cook 5 more minutes until vegetables are just tender.
Taste the broth: The thukpa broth should be spiced, slightly sour from tomatoes and clear. Adjust salt.
Assemble and serve: Divide the cooked noodles among 4 deep bowls. Ladle the hot broth with chicken and vegetables over the noodles. Garnish with sliced spring onions and coriander leaves. Serve immediately — the noodles absorb the broth quickly.
Note: Thukpa is the Tibetan noodle soup that has become one of the most commonly eaten preparations across the entire eastern Himalayan belt — Sikkim, Darjeeling, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. In Sikkim, both Bhutia and Nepali communities have their own versions — the Bhutia version is more Tibetan in character while the Nepali version uses more Indian spicing. Eaten as a dinner or warming lunch in cold mountain weather, thukpa is the Himalayan equivalent of what a warming bowl of soup means in other parts of the world.