From Issue Two of the Gear Patrol Magazine. Subscribe today for 15% off the GP Store.
“Curry” is a versatile but elusive word to define, especially in Sri Lanka. While it generally means a mix of spices that are ground together to flavor food, it can also refer to the leaf of a certain tree, or be used as a verb to describe the cooking of certain dishes. In Sri Lanka, the joke goes that anything can be curried, from goat to pumpkin to cashew nuts.
Sri Lankan cuisine is hotter and uses more coconut than that of its neighbor, India; it also utilizes curry powders that are roasted after they are mixed. A typical Sri Lankan meal usually consists of a pile of rice surrounded by several curries — whatever is in season — often augmented by a spicy sambol or two. It’s always eaten with the hands, which locals will tell you enhances the dining experience, though for the outsider it can take considerable practice.
Chef L.B.P. Bandula, who cooks at Sunshinestories surf camp in Ahangama, gave us these recipes for a Sri Lankan-style curry feast. – Jason Heaton
Dal Curry
Ingredients:
300g red lentils
1/2 brown coconut (or 1/2 can of unsweetened coconut milk + 3/4 cup water)
10 curry leaves
1 cinnamon stick
4 garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons unroasted curry powder
1 teaspoon mustard powder
2 inches of lemongrass
Preparation
1. Wash the lentils in water two times, then cover so that they are 1 inch under water.
2. Chop the garlic and add it together with the spices, curry leaves and lemongrass, and bring to a boil.
3. Grate the coconut. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the grated coconut. Squeeze the coconut meat in the water with your hands for 2-3 minutes, until the water becomes deep white coconut milk. Strain the coconut milk. (Alternatively, combine 1/2 can of unsweetened coconut milk and 3/4 cup of water.)
4. Add the coconut milk to the red lentils, then boil for another 5 minutes.
5. Garnish with chili powder.
