My kitchen will be temporarily closed when I travel to Nepal during the school holidays. In its place, will be kitchens in Nepal which will whip up plate after plate of dhal baat for one whole week. Let’s see how my pampered little kids are going to survive this. OK, some of you may not know what dhal baat is.

Steamed rice, curry vegetables (carrots, cauliflower) and a cooked lentil soup called dhal are the main components of Nepal’s staple food. The dish is called dhal baat. Porters can eat a mountain of this.

Above is a video taken by me at a lunch stop on the way to the Langtang Valley just north of Kathmandu. This is as authentic and unadulterated as it gets. The mutton is even rubbery. It’s going to be one heck of an adventure for uninitiated Singaporeans.

© Chan Joon Yee