Bhutanese have undying affair with chili despite the fact that chilies are spicy in nature. Every cuisine will have invariable amounts of chili as chili forms the main recipe to most Bhutanese meals, without which the dish becomes incomplete. In olden days when there was no heating appliances like we have at present days, eating spicy dishes especially the chili helped people to keep themselves warm during the cold weather. Since the culture of eating chili is predominant in Bhutanese diet, children at young age are trained to eat spicy food.
Trashi Yangtse district celebrates uniqueness by preserving its sacred culture and traditions. Even though it is nestled in far flung corner of the country, its culture has definitely remained unaffected from any external influence. The tiny district has a flair for Urka Bangala (Yangtsepa chili), traditional chili variety specific to Yangtse. Fleshly green or red chili is found in upper part of Yangtse; Bumdeling and Womanang village. The chili got its name as ‘Urka’ after resembling the shape of a horse bag (tsampa).
It has a shape similar to capsicum and almost gives pungent taste with moderate hotness. Urka Bangala is larger in size and is considered as one of the most unique species of chilies in Bhutan as it is not grown any where else in the country. The other species of chili generally grown in Yangtse is termed as Yangtsepa ema but the Urka Bangala is known as real Yangtsepa ema.
People nowadays cultivate Urka Bangala at large scale and has become one primary cash crop unlike past days. Urka Bangala is popularly cultivated in the villages of Womanang and part of Bumdeling. Its growing season starts from pre-monsoon and lasts till the end of autumn.
During peak season the local markets are flooded with wide range of Urka Bangala in different shapes, sizes and colors. The per kg market price for green Urka costs nu.60-70, red Urka costs around nu.70-100 and during the off season, dried Urka costs around nu.1500-2000.
As eating chilies are well rooted in Bhutanese culture, Urka Bangala is a good staple for chili cheese stew widely known as Ema Datshi, national dish of Bhutan. To further preserve the product, Urka Bangala Production Group was formed by locals in 2018 supported by Dzongkhag Agriculture Office and the group generated hefty amount of income.
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