Ema Datshi

Ema datshi is the national dish of Bhutan, its name simply meaning “chilli and cheese.” Whole green or red chillies are simmered with soft local cheese, onions and tomato into a creamy, intensely spicy stew. It is almost always eaten with Bhutan's distinctive nutty red rice.

Unlike cuisines where chilli is a background seasoning, here it is the main event — the dish is defined by heat balanced against the mellow richness of the cheese.

Chillies arrived in the Himalayas centuries ago and became woven into Bhutanese daily life, strung up to dry on rooftops across the country. In Bhutan they are considered a vegetable, and no meal feels complete without them.

Ema datshi is served in homes, monasteries and restaurants alike, with countless regional variations swapping in mushrooms, ferns or potatoes (kewa datshi). It is the edible emblem of Bhutanese identity.