Mary Vincent & Kesang Choedon While in Bhutan for mobile health meetings with community health workers, IT representatives, and government officials on behalf of the Global Health Research Foundation (GHRF) in July 2012, our team had the great pleasure of being invited to visit the Folk Heritage Museum and Restaurant in the capital, Thimphu. Chef Kesang Choeden, featured in the video below, is working to preserve traditional Bhutanese cuisine by reviving recipes that are becoming extinct. Kesang is partnering with Farmers to grow products that used to be grown by Bhutanese ancestors and are disappearing and no longer growing. The restaurant doesn't have a set menu because it depends on the products that are seasonal and are growing at the time. She is currently doing research on the historical foods and preparing a cookbook. Pictures below include Red Rice, Ferns, Ema Datsi, (Chili Cheese), Dumplings, and Tea. On a recent January 2013 trip, I tried Orchids and Cheese (Olachoto Datsi) - These fascinating and delicious foods are vegetarian, and spicy, which is how I like it! :) I have mentioned to Erica Weirich MD, Director, Global Health Research Foundation www.ghrf.org and Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine Stanford University School of Medicine, that she will win a Nobel Prize someday. In this video, you will see her recent visit to Bhutan and Nepal sharing the 'Patient Outcomes and Environmental Monitoring System', In Nepal, even though there is significant deforestation, the villages are committed to keeping their Valley Poacher-Free. |