To an armchair traveler like me, reading this cookbook was a very
special way of learning about Tibet and its people. And even though
I'm not planning or recreating the dishes, I can almost taste them in
my mind by reading this book.
The authors, Tsering Wangmo and Zara
Houshmand not only bring recipes from The Lhasa Mood Tibetan
restaurant in San Francisco on to the printed page. They also give the
reader a feeling of the role that food plays in the way of life of the
Tibetan people.
For example, in the Tibetan diet, butter and is much
more than food. It is accepted as currency for trade or taxes, burned
for light in butter lamps, smeared on the face as an ointment for
protection against wind and cold, and consumed medicinally. And the
salted and buttered tea, known as Poecha, is consumed in large amounts
as people sip it all day to keep warm and avoid dehydration in the
high altitude.
Another interesting insight about Tibetan food is
appreciation for the Buddhist belief that all lives are equal, so
larger animals are preferred as food. In his writings, His Holiness
the Dalai Lama has expressed his utter dismay at the loss of lives in
a whole plateful of shrimp making a meal for a single person.
I'm
lucky to have several Tibetan restaurants to enjoy in New York City,
but if I ever get to San Francisco I would definitely check out the
Lhasa Moon.