How to Experience the Best Local Food in Sri Lanka

The island nation of Sri Lanka is one of the world’s most admired tourism destinations, drawing a steady stream of holidaymakers with its varied and entrancing attractions; these include sightseeing wonders, cultural attractions, marvels of nature, exotic wildlife, shopping opportunities, exciting nightlife and more. Sri Lanka also features a distinctive cuisine with many mouth-watering culinary specialities available, and some of these delicious foods are described below. 

Eat rice and curry 

The obvious choice with regard to commencing your sampling of Sri Lankan foods is the favourite rice and curry, a gastronomic staple for many locals. If you take the opportunity to try this kind of meal, you will be presented with a generous helping of rice (this can include red or white rice varieties) and a selection of curries as well as sambols (relishes). You will have the chance to experience a variety of curries, including those featuring vegetables, chicken, fish, other kinds of seafood, beef, pork, eggs and more. Accompaniments such as pickles, sambols and pappadum complete the meal. 

Try hoppers 

The much-loved hoppers, locally known as 'appa', happen to be bowl-like pancakes that are made using fermented rice flour; they have a soft middle and crispy edges. A popular variation is egg hoppers, which, as you might expect, have an egg cooked into the centre. Hoppers are typically accompanied by potato curry, fish or meat curries and various spicy sambols. There are also sweet hoppers containing treacle or jaggery. You may enjoy local specialities such as hoppers at accommodation providers like Avani Kalutara Resort, which is also a great place to base yourself on your foodie adventures.

Enjoy seafood 

As Sri Lanka is a tropical island nation, it isn’t surprising that visitors would have the opportunity to enjoy an array of tantalising seafood dishes here. One of the outstanding specialities to try is the mouth-watering Negombo crab curry, which is sure to delight the taste buds of the committed foodie. Another not-to-be-missed speciality is prawns in chilli and garlic, an irresistible and flavourful creation. You may also sample dishes like grilled reef fish with lime, which will undoubtedly please the discerning traveller. Of course, when it comes to sampling seafood, the island's south and southwest coast is one of the best places to go. With that in mind, don't miss dining at restaurants in Kalutara known for offering fresh seafood and local culinary favourites like Sri Lankan crab curry.

Savour string hoppers 

String hoppers are rather different from the hoppers described above, being mounds of fine noodle-like strands composed of steamed rice or wheat flour. You will find that a meal of string hoppers and accompaniments is rather like rice and curry, albeit with the string hoppers replacing the rice. String hoppers are commonly enjoyed for breakfast as well as dinner in Sri Lanka. This food is commonly paired with dhal curry, potato curry, fish, beef or chicken curry, seeni sambol (a sweet onion relish), coconut sambol and cutlets. 

Feast on kottu roti

Your experience of the popular Sri Lankan foods wouldn’t be complete without savouring the commonly consumed kottu roti. This distinctive street food is prepared by stir-frying pieces of chopped flatbread (godamba roti) along with vegetables, eggs, spices and options like meat, fish and cheese. The result is a flavourful, unique dish that is served warm and often accompanied by a spicy curry. Interestingly, the preparation of kottu roti involves the characteristic clanging sounds of the metal implements on the griddle, so watching (and hearing) it being made is not to be missed either!

Dine on lamprais 

The tasty lamprais is a special rice dish that has its origins in the Dutch Burgher community (the descendants of Dutch colonialists). This distinctive culinary speciality includes rice cooked within a stock made using a number of meats, as well as a curry of mixed meat typically including beef, chicken and pork. Lamprais also usually includes seeni sambol (an onion relish with a variety of flavours), ash plantain curry, eggplant curry, frikkadels (Dutch meatballs) and blachan (savoury shrimp paste). All of these delicious items are wrapped in a banana leaf and then baked in an oven. The final result is a hearty, comforting dish with a host of aromas and spices.