An Introduction to Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is situated off the Southern tip of India surrounded by the Indian Ocean. It is known as the “Pearl of the Ocean”. Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon before the county became a Republic. It is 65,606 square kilometers in size. The Capital of Sri Lanka is Colombo and the country has become a popular tourist destination in recent times.

Sri Lanka is known for its spectacular landscapes, lush tea plantations, coconut palm fringed beaches, ruined temples, rivers and wild safari. It is also well known for its rubber, precious stones, textile, coconut, seafood and tropical fruits. The people of Sri Lankan are known to be cultured, charming and very friendly and hospitable.

Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western parts of Sri Lanka are all well known for their own specialty of cooking. People of different ethnic groups live in Sri Lanka and influence the country’s diverse cooking. Each of the groups has its own method of cooking and preparing foods using various spices. Weights and measures are not often used and quantities of ingredients are simply measured by fingers. Water was measured with the fingers by using the second line on the finger above the washed rice, which is a perfect measurement when cooking rice. A meal in Sri Lanka is called “Rice and Curry”; a term used for food in general. A standard menu in Sri Lankan homes always has more than two vegetables cooked every day with the seafood or meats.

This website includes some authentic recipes from my book - A Colombo Kitchen, Curries Made Easy. Because Sri Lankan cooking consists of various types of rice, coconut, native vegetables and tropical fruits, I have separated the recipes into sections for easy reference.