Yomari Punhi

Punhi means full moon, while Yomari is a type of Newari dish. Yamari Punhi is a holiday in which Yamari is made, eaten, and distributed on the full moon day. In the Kathmandu valley, this celebration is quite popular. Yomari is a Nepalbhasa word that means “Tasty Dumpling“. Yomari Punhi is a Newari event that commemorates the completion of the rice harvest.

Yomari is thought to have been created by a Newari couple in Panauti (Panauti is a municipality in Kavrepalanchok District in Bagmati Province of Nepal located 32 km Southeast of the capital Kathmandu. The town is currently listed as a UNESCO tentative site since 1996), who experimented with the first lot of rice harvest and molasses. The combination was well received by all, and the practice of preparing the sweetmeat for special occasions grew in popularity as time went. Because everyone enjoyed the feast, the bread was given the name Yomari, which means “Tasty Bread” in Newari. Yomari is a steamed sweetmeat made from rice-flour dough (from the fresh crop), shaped like a fig and filled with molasses and sesame seeds.