Across the highlands
Yangben
Dried lichen with fatty pork and pig's blood, richly spiced in the karai
50 min·4 servings
yangben (dried edible lichen)
Dried edible tree lichen gathered by the Limbu of eastern Nepal and Sikkim; soaked and boiled, it turns soft and spongy, with an earthy, faintly bitter taste.
Caution: Yangben must be thoroughly soaked, rinsed and boiled before eating, as the raw lichen is bitter, gritty and hard to digest.
Yangben is a leafy lichen gathered from tree bark in the eastern Himalaya, then cleaned and dried. Dry, it is grey-green, brittle and light; after soaking and boiling it becomes soft, spongy and slightly chewy. Its own flavour is earthy, woodsy and mildly bitter, but it recedes because the lichen mainly soaks up fat, chilli and spices, which is why it is usually cooked with pork fat or meat. Outside the region it is very hard to find, most likely in Nepali grocery shops or by mail order from sellers of Nepali foods, often only on request.
Substitute:
There is no good substitute. Kalpasi (stone flower) from Indian grocers is a related lichen, but it is used as a spice in small amounts, is drier and more aromatic and cannot carry a whole dish; Iceland moss from health food shops or pharmacies is also a lichen, but much more bitter and different in texture.
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