A griddled, fermented rice-batter pancake cooked in a dimpled pan — spongy and full of holes, crumpet-like, mild in flavor. A tea-shop street snack, usually two cakes sandwiched with a savory topping.
A Burmese rice-batter tea-shop snack ('mont' = snack), akin to the South Asian family of fermented rice-and-lentil griddle pancakes; a long-standing inexpensive Bamar street food rather than a fried dough.
Yangon 19th Street's Yatha Teashop chain serves 4 sticks for 800 kyat alongside a glass of lahpet yay — the standard worker's breakfast under 1,500 kyat total.
Pale, lightly browned spongy cakes riddled with holes; soft and slightly chewy with a faintly crisp base. Mild on their own, they carry the savory topping of fried onion, dried shrimp/ngapi, oil and scallion.
The rice batter is fermented so it produces gas; when ladled into a dimpled griddle pan it bubbles and sets into a honeycomb of holes (the source of the spongy crumpet-like texture), browning on the base while staying moist inside.
Variations
Served either savory (fried onion, dried shrimp, ngapi, scallion; sometimes tomato, cabbage, chili, cooked split peas) or sweet (shredded/toasted coconut, sesame, palm-sugar syrup); the batter may include glutinous rice or legumes depending on the maker.
On the Palate
Where Mont Pyar Tha Lat sits in the Burmese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6How it's made
5 steps · 18 min active + 1 hour 5 min waiting
- 165 min
Make yeasted dough: 400 g flour + 7 g yeast + 200 ml warm water + 60 g sugar + 30 ml oil; rise 1 hr.
Watch outLet the dough rise until doubled and springy — poke it and the dent slowly fills back; that gas is what keeps the fried knots light.
- 210 min
Roll into long ropes; twist each into a knot.
- 32 min
Roll in sesame seeds.
- 44 min
Deep-fry in 180 °C oil 3 min until golden and crisp.
Watch outFry until evenly golden and crisp — the sesame should smell toasty; pull them before they go dark or they turn bitter.
- 52 min
Drain; dust with sugar while warm.
Watch outDust the sugar on while they're still warm — it clings then; on a cooled crust it just slides off.
