Chatpate (Origin unknown) has to be one of the greatest contributions of Nepali Civilization(heh, 'civilized'?), along with Momo(Origin: Ancient Tibet). Of course, that's not saying much, because there's not much Nepalis have given to the world, but still, Chatpate deserves it.
The very process of creation of the delicacy(for me, anyways), is intriguing. Take a handful of muri(puffed rice), some lemon juice, chillies, secret sauce, green garnishing, and whatever sour/salty/spicy you can find, and mix well. It should be wet, but not so much that muri gets all flimsy. Pour the contents in a paper-cone, add a few pieces of cardboard that will serve as 'spoons', and you are good to go.
Mothers will disagree, of course. For them, the muri used by the chatpatewallahs is old and cheap, and probably contaminated by TB organisms.
"Lemon maybe good for you when you have cold, but used here, they become harmful ingredients that will certainly give you ulcers, chillies are just as bad, and chilly powder is powdered brick mixed with something spicy. The green garnishing is probably rotten too," they will say.
However, the ingredient that gets the most complaints is definitely the secret sauce, because--duh-- its secret.
It's surprising how the chatpatewallahs never reveal their recipe for the sauce, even when it's not particularly good. Even when they do reveal the recipe, they are probably lying, because you can NEVER make the sauce that tastes exactly the same. So what's up will all the secrecy? WHY do they have to hide the recipe as if its the 7X formula for coke. It should be that difficult to figure it out? Nepali mothers argue that those recipe are secrets because they have inedible-but-tasty ingredients in them.
The main complaint mothers have about the sauce is the water it is based on. Do the poor chatpatewallahs really buy expensive mineral water as the base, which they claim, or do they use any water they can get hands on: cheap and no-hassles? The dirty, dirty water could contain anything, and by anything mothers argue that the possibilities are unlimited
The mothers are probably right--they usually are. But will that stop their children, aged anywhere from 7 to 27 from going to the chatpatewallahs and eating the contaminated chatpates which probably have more number of species of harmful organisms than different ingredients in them? Probably not. Why? Because the Chatpates are so frikkin' damn good, and you cannot resist them. They are like Coke, but without the hassle of having to meet the dealers in secret alleys, and the ever-present possibility of getting caught by the cops and having to rat put the entire gang, only to be shot dead the moment you are free from prison. GO CHATPATE!