🇳🇵 Nepali Cuisine

Kinema Curry

Fermented Soybean Curry

Prep Time 10 min

Servings 4

Difficulty Easy

Calories 244 kcal

A pungent curry made with kinema, Nepal's traditional fermented soybean product similar to Japanese natto. The fermented beans create a rich umami-laden dish popular in eastern Nepal's Limbu and Rai communities.

Ingredients

2 cups kinema (fermented soybeans)
1 onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
2 green chilies, sliced
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons mustard oil
Salt to taste
Fresh cilantro for garnish

Instructions

1 Heat mustard oil in a pot and add cumin seeds. Let them splutter.
2 Add chopped onion and cook until softened, about four minutes.
3 Add tomatoes and green chilies, cook until tomatoes break down into a sauce, about five minutes.
4 Add kinema and turmeric, stir well. Add half a cup of water and simmer for ten minutes.
5 Season with salt, garnish with cilantro, and serve hot with steamed rice.

Did You Know?

Kinema fermentation uses banana leaves and fern fronds as natural bacterial starters, and the process was developed independently from Japanese natto despite producing a remarkably similar product.