10 Things To Eat In Sri Lanka

Eroshan Meewella, co-founder of Kolamba in London’s Soho, tells us what makes the food of his homeland so special

- Eroshan Meewella

Eroshan and Aushi Meewella, co-founders of Kolamba in Soho, raided the recipe books of friends and family members back in Colombo (Kolamba), where they grew up, for their restaurant. Their dishes are a mixture of multicultural recipes from Sinhalese, Tamil, Moor, Dutch and Malay influences, just as you’d find on the island itself.

1 Hoppers

The famous crispy pancake. These savoury bowl-shaped pancakes are usually eaten for breakfast. They come plain, with an egg cracked into the centre (we love ours runny rather than hard) or even sweet with coconut milk and treacle. They are messy – rip and dip – enjoyed with traditional curries (such as chicken), and are also immensely tricky to make. Don’t be fooled by the ready-made mixes, there is an age-old process to making these small crispy delights, starting with sifting and pounding the rice to make it into rice flour.

2 Pol sambol

This is our soul sprinkled on everything! It is sunshine on aplate and Lankans eat it for all three meals if given a chance. It is a muddle of freshly ground coconut, ground red chilli, salt and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

3 Cutlets

I don’t think any aunty’s house is quite right without an offering of cutlets. These are arancini-style balls of spiced potato and fish (usually), breadcrumbed and deep-fried until golden. They appear at afternoon teas, on birthday party tables or are eaten as a ‘just come home from school’ treat.

4 Iced coffee