🇳🇵 Nepal · Sauces
Hog Plum Momo Achar
A creamy Nepali tomato and toasted-sesame achar sharpened with hog plum, timur, chilli, ginger and garlic.
Behind the plate
This is a distinct variation of the site’s earlier Momo Ko Achar, not a duplicate. Onion and a measured cooked tomato base give it sweetness, while hog plum powder adds the characteristic sour fruit note.
Toasted sesame provides the traditional creamy body, though the supplied formula allows roasted peanut or cashew as an alternative. Timur contributes the floral, tingling finish that makes the sauce especially good with steamed momo.
Why this recipe works
Tempering cumin in oil builds the first aroma, cooking tomato until jammy concentrates its flavour, and blending only after cooling protects the fresh coriander and timur. Ground toasted seed or nut thickens the sauce naturally.
The recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp minced fresh ginger
- 2 large Roma tomatoes, chopped
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp ground red chilli, adjusted to taste
- 2 bird’s-eye chillies, chopped and adjusted to taste
- Fine salt, to taste
- 3 tbsp toasted white sesame seeds, ground
- 3 tbsp hog plum powder, or juice of 1 large lemon
- 1–2 pinches ground timur
- A small handful fresh coriander, optional
Method
- Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add the cumin seeds and allow them to splutter.
- Add the onion and cook for 2–3 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and ginger and stir until fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes, turmeric, ground cumin, red chilli, bird’s-eye chilli and salt.
- Cook gently for 15–20 minutes, stirring often, until the tomatoes have collapsed and the mixture looks lightly jammy. Cool.
- Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan until pale golden, cool immediately, then grind to a fine powder.
- Blend the cooled tomato mixture with the sesame powder, hog plum powder, timur and optional coriander until creamy.
- Taste and adjust the salt, sourness and chilli before serving or refrigerating.
Chef’s notes
- This differs materially from the existing Momo Ko Achar through its onion base and hog-plum souring, so both versions are published and linked.
- If using peanut or cashew instead of sesame, label the sauce clearly and update the allergen information.
- Sesame burns quickly; remove it from the pan as soon as it turns golden.
- Hog plum powders vary in salt and sourness, so adjust after blending.
At the table
Serve with freshly steamed momo and compare it with the linked Momo Ko Achar, Jhol Achar or Tomato & Coriander Achar.