Foodicted Fellow Food Comfort begins with Thenthuk- Tibetan Noodle soup

Comfort begins with Thenthuk- Tibetan Noodle soup

32 Comments 8:59 am

Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup

Food, like a loving touch or a glimpse of divine power, has that ability to comfort.

Norman Kolpas

Brief overview- Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup- Meaning, History and whereabouts

The term “Thenthuk” isn’t very tough to pronounce. Of course, it is not, “Worcestershire” or “Isthmus” that you need a special course to enunciate certain words. Tibetan linguistic society says that “Then” means “Pull” whereas, “Thuk” means “Noodles”. Hence, it is a hand-pulled noodle soup and way too popular in our neighboring country of Tibet. You will get to know more about Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup in this blog post.

Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup
My comfort bowl

There has always been an argument between Nepalese and Tibetan people, regarding the origin of Thenthuk, but let me put it in a very simple and logical manner. Thukpa is a very popular Nepalese cuisine and it is loved by many people. Not only that, but Indians, Mongolians, Thai and other groups of people enjoy it in almost all the seasons. Nepalese thukpa is a noodle soup, consisting of chili powder, spices, noodles with gram and peas. The spicy flavor is the reason for the same, as mentioned above. Due to immigrant Tibetan refugees, a lot of culinary exchange takes place and this very reason is responsible for the birth of “Thenthuk”.

How to prepare a comforting bowl of Thenthuk soup

I have watched a Tibetan aunty in Dehradun, preparing Thenthuk, closely for a week or so, in a nearby restaurant. Hence, putting it step by step as per she proceeded.

  1. A cup of flour and water are needed to start off. Mix the flour and water, until the dough turns out to be really smooth.
  2. Knead the dough in such a manner, so that it is flexible (Stretch it, pull it but please don’t play with it.)
  3. A fun task follows up now. Give the kneaded dough a perfect shape. (It can be a cylinder, a fruit and so on.) Now roll the pieces and dip them in oil.

Pro tip: Wrap the shaped dough with a plastic material and cover it with a lid so that it doesn’t dry out.

4. Let’s start with the most important part i.e., the broth. Chop fresh veggies and meat (I chose chicken but that doesn’t mean, you cannot choose pork or beef).

5. Fry these chopped beauties in oil for five minutes or so (time depends on, whether the added pieces of stuff are perfectly cooked or not so, kindly take care of that).

6. Add the broth/bouillon (I prefer my Knorr, as always), a little bit of salt and soy sauce.

7. I prefer my Thenthuk with sliced potato, cilantro, onions, spinach and a pinch of oregano.

8. Now comes the most challenging yet, a fun part. You need to add the dough into the bubbly broth (Don’t think much deep as I tend to go insane when it comes to writing about food. Bubbly as in, the broth has started boiling).

9. Elongate the dough by rolling it against your fingers. Flatten it a little and cast them into the pot.

10. When all the noodles, veggies, meat and everything else are in the pot, cook it for five minutes.

AAAAAAND VOILA! Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup is ready to entice your taste buds.

Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup
Chicken Thenthuk

32 thoughts on “Comfort begins with Thenthuk- Tibetan Noodle soup”

  1. The truth is , unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself , unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over …..
    Be brave , ready to face and endure danger with all your bravery presumptuous degree
    I wish you good luck and success on your life road

  2. My comfort food is chicken , infact anything made of chicken! Thanks for detailing the recipe , will try Thenthuk

  3. I love soups! Thanks for sharing the recipe for Thenthuk as well as the story behind its name. Even though I am a vegetarian I am sure there must be a vegetarian version of this noodles soup too.

  4. Sounds very delicious! Thanks for the quick recipe. I must try these Tibetan noodles at my home. And yes it’s not very difficult to pronounce as well…lol

  5. I’ve only used the ready cook noodles. Making noodles at home sounds intriguing. Wanna try this Thenthuk Tibetan Noodle soup

  6. Amazing and beautiful post. This soup is so tempting and mouthwatering. The presentation of the soup is so good. This recipe is so easy and nutritious. Great thoughts.

  7. This broth style Tibetan noodle soup sounds really delicious. Love the photos as well. Thanks for the quick recipe. I must try this.

  8. I have had thukpa but never thenthuk! This looks delicious and comforting! Thank you for the recipe! Will make this at home!

  9. The more I read about this Noodle bowl the more I felt it would be a perfect comfort food. I must give it a try at home.

  10. This looks like perfect comfort bowl on those relaxing days. Love the impact of culture on this dish existence.

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