In their homeland, dishes use "Tsampa", a flour ground from roasted barley. Tibetan staples include barley, yak meat, yak milk, and a tea flavored with salt, baking soda and yak butter. Yak meat is similar to beef, but not quite.

Typical foods include noodles; goat cheese; a limited variety of vegetables such as potatoes, radishes, cabbage, bok choy and cauliflower; and some lamb, chicken, eggs and fish. Dinner might be a meat broth with noodles. Sweets are rarely eaten, they eat fruit and juice instead, or for some, a favorite dessert is sun dried yak cheese.

Tibetans use mild seasonings and not too many spices. The Indian influence is evident with the use of red and Basmati rice, the flat chapati bread, and curried dishes. Noodles and the momos are of Chinese origins.