Chatamari

चतांमरिnew

Also: Newari pizza, chataamari

A thin, soft rice-flour crêpe from the Newar community of Nepal, cooked on a griddle and topped with minced meat, egg, or vegetables.

Identity criteria

1Batter is made from rice flour, not wheat
2Cooked as a thin, soft crêpe/pancake on a flat griddle, covered while toppings set
3Toppings (minced meat, egg, vegetables) are added directly onto the cooking batter, not folded in after
4A defining ceremonial and feast dish of Newari cuisine
5Served open-faced, eaten flat rather than rolled

Base

Rice-flour batteressentialDefines it; wheat or buckwheat would make a different dish.

Protein

Minced meat (often buff/water-buffalo) or eggoptionalCommon topping; vegetable versions exist.

Aromatics

Ginger, garlic, green chili, onionoptionalSeason the topping.

Fat

Oil or ghee for the griddleessentialKeeps the crêpe from sticking and crisps the base.

Garnish

Coriander, spicesoptionalFinishing flavor.

Griddle cooking: Sets the thin batter into a soft, pliable crêpe with a lightly crisp base.
Covered cooking: Traps steam to cook the toppings (egg, meat) without flipping the delicate crêpe.

Served: Open-faced round crêpe served whole or in wedges
Temperature: Hot
Portion: Snack or shared feast plate
Pairs with: aila (Newari rice liquor) · achar (pickle) · chiura (beaten rice)

savorymildly spicedrice-forward

soft and pliable crêpe with a lightly crisp base

A beloved Newari snack and feast food of Nepal's Kathmandu Valley, eaten at festivals and gatherings, often with rice liquor.

year-round · festivals

Egg chatamari · Kathmandu Valley
Topped with a cracked egg.
Minced-meat chatamari · Kathmandu Valley
Topped with seasoned buff or chicken mince.
Plain / vegetable chatamari · Kathmandu Valley
Simple or vegetable-topped feast version.

sibling Dosa
Another South Asian rice-batter griddle dish, though fermented and crisper.
pairs-with Aila
Newari liquor often served with feast foods.

Buffalo mince → Chicken or vegetable toppingadmissible
Acceptable variation depending on diet.
Rice-flour batter → Wheat-flour batterinadmissible
Produces a roti or pancake, not chatamari.

Calling it 'Newari pizza' and adding cheese or tomato sauce, which is inauthentic
Using wheat flour instead of rice flour
Spreading the batter too thick so it cooks dense rather than soft
Flipping it like a pancake instead of cooking covered to set the toppings

A traditional dish of the Newar people of the Kathmandu Valley, central to Newari feasts and festivals.

Confidence: high