A plate of momo can always lift anyone’s mood. With a variety of filling options—veg, buff, chicken, khuwa—we Nepalis are obsessed with these morsels. But for those who want to include low-carb food in their diet, they may have to forgo these beloved dumplings. Due to the amount of carbs present in the wrappers, substituting the outer layer—generally made from plain white flour—with cabbage leaves is a good way to cut carbs, says Dr Praniti Singh, clinical and bariatric nutritionist, While they’re low-carb, it is an interesting twist to the traditional momos and everyone should try this regardless of their diet preference.

Ingredients

1 medium cabbage

250g of minced chicken

¾ tbsp of minced ginger

3/4 tbsps minced garlic

1 tbsp salt

½ onion

2 tbsps butter

2 small tomatoes

1 red chili

2 walnuts

Directions

Don’t overdo the marinade—just mix salt, garlic, ginger and a bit of momo masala. In a pot, boil some water with a pinch of salt. Remove some whole leaves of cabbage and blanch for 30 seconds.

Wrap small balls of meat with par-cooked cabbage. Grease steamer with butter and steam for eight minutes. Your low-carb momos are ready.

For the achaar, fry tomatoes and red chili in a pan with butter. After a few minutes, blend the two together. Add some walnuts into the blender. And, without any sort of hesitation, eat with low-carb achaar.