Yak butter tea and roasted barley flour is the staple of the Tibetan diet. Many Tibetan people drink 10 cups a day and some Tibetans can drink up to 30 cups of yak butter tea a day. The butter in the tea is not butter like many westerners would think of it. It comes from the yak; a high altitude woolly cow.
Yaks are the most important animals in Tibetan life. Whether the Tibetan person is a subsistence farmer or grassland nomad, the yak is the cornerstone of Tibetan existence. Tibetan people are incredibly resourceful. Tibetans will get everything they can out of the yak. Yoghurt, butter and cheese are all made from the yak’s milk, not to mention the milk itself.
The woolly hair of the yak is spun to make cloth and rope. This yak cloth and yak rope is used for nomadic Tibetan tents. The skin of the yak is sometimes used for the hide. The Tibetan yak is used as a pack animal, carrying Tibetan nomad’s tents or transporting goods to take to the market. In some parts of Tibet, yaks are used at festival times for racing, which can be very entertaining.
The Tibetan yak does not like to live at low altitudes, but dwells at altitudes between 2800 and 5000 meters (8200 – 16400 feet). Some small and vulnerable populations of wild yaks exist, but numbers are dwindling due to domestication and hunting. Wild yaks are much larger than their domesticated counterpart. Wild yaks can stand as tall as two meters (6 feet) and weigh as much as one ton.
The tea horse trade route
Tibetans and Chinese have been trading with each other for centuries. The Tibetans traded salt and horses for the Chinese brick tea. This caravan trade route is what is known as the ancient tea horse trade route. This significant caravan trade road was of great importance in the Second World War where supplies were taken from India into China.
Mixing butter tea
The milk of the yak is what is used to make yak butter. Chinese green tea is placed in water, which is then boiled in a clay teapot. This tea is then placed in a churn along with yak butter and salt and these ingredients are mixed together. The hot salty mixture is poured into a bowl through a tea strainer.
I have taken many people to Tibetan homes to have yak butter tea and I usually tell them that yak butter tea is more like salty butter soup; it is served hot, salty and in a bowl. In the Westerners mind this is a more apt description that helps them better prepare their minds for what the yak butter tea will taste like.
Tibetan hospitality always comes with butter tea
Unfortunately for the westerner who is still acquiring the taste of yak butter tea, Tibetan people are very hospitable and will continue to re-fill your cup. This is one of the very memorable qualities of Tibetan people; they are undoubtedly very hospitable and friendly. A full cup of the yak butter tea is usually left remaining when the guest leaves because the Tibetan host is determined to be as hospitable as possible.
After the butter tea is served to you, the gracious Tibetan host will then put a bowl of roasted barely flour in front of you to eat. Tibetan people often use their hands to mix the yak butter tea and the barley flour together in the bowl. They then eat what has been made – a rolled up ball of yak butter and barley flour dough.
Butter tea is a must
Cultures and customs can only be shared and enjoyed properly if we try the local food and drink. Yak butter tea is an acquired taste that travelers to Tibetan areas must try in order to say they have truly been to Tibet. Traveling to Tibet can only be worthwhile if people are willing to try new and adventurous things. New landscapes must accompany newly acquired tastes to make for a truly enriching new experience.
Rhys Emmanuel - Living and doing development work as a medical professional in Asia has given me unique insight into many areas of life and work and a ...
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