Tsampa

Background

Tsampa is flour made by roasting hulled highland barley and grinding it, sometimes mixed with pea flour, and is the staple food of Tibetans. Because it is already roasted, tsampa needs no further cooking; it is simple to process, easy to carry and keeps for a long time, suiting farming and herding life and providing ample energy for people on the plateau. Nyangre Valley in Lhasa's northern outskirts has long been an important place for making tsampa; nearly 20 water mills stand along a stream almost two kilometers long, of which the Gyami water mill dates from about the 17th century, and the "Lhasa Gyami water mill craft" was inscribed in 2006 on the first list of national intangible cultural heritage. Before Buddhism reached Tibet, Tibetans already had the custom of tossing tsampa into the air to pray for safety, which later became a celebratory ritual at weddings and festivals.

Local customs

• Traditionally you pour a little butter tea into a bowl, add the tsampa, and optionally dried cheese (chura) and sugar, then turn the bowl while mixing the flour and tea with your fingers and knead it into balls to eat
• it can also be made into tsampa porridge. In Tibetan restaurants, tsampa is often served as small cakes pressed in a mould, accompanied by butter tea.

Religion & beliefs

• Scattering tsampa is a Tibetan ritual of blessing and celebration
• at festivals and weddings you will see people throwing it into the air. At temples or ceremonies, please don't grab tsampa to play with or throw it casually. Tsampa itself is vegetarian, but it is often eaten with butter (a dairy product).

Rules that apply here

Travel tips

• Tea houses and Tibetan restaurants around Barkhor Street and the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa serve tsampa and butter tea, good for breakfast or an afternoon snack. Dietary notes: highland barley contains gluten
• butter tea contains dairy and salt and is high in calories
• if you have just arrived in Lhasa, guard against altitude sickness by eating light, drinking little alcohol and resting. You can combine it with the Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Street and the Potala Palace
• if you are interested in water mills, head to the Nyangre Valley area in the northern outskirts, subject to local opening announcements. Barley flour is also sold in supermarkets as a souvenir. Pairs well with sweet tea. Prices, opening hours and the day's availability are as announced by each shop
• popular places often have queues at peak mealtimes, so eating off-peak is more relaxed.