Are you longing to taste some delicious Sri Lankan food while traveling on the island? Sri Lanka offers the best opportunity with endless numbers of various yummy dishes. Visiting Sri Lanka gives a good experience for food lovers with tasty food indulgence in mind. Although the Sri Lankan food scene highly focuses on rice and curries, there are many delicious side dishes to combine with it. You’ll see that Sri Lankan banquets are extremely colorful with dishes in various hues. Here we are going to show you the must-try dishes in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankans always try to prepare a wholesome and nutrient-rich meal. A major portion of the meal contains vegan curries, which are vegetables cooked with several essential spices and herbs. Spicy meat or fish curry enhance the appetite and taste of the meal. As well as, Sri Lankans usually don’t forget to add some green leaves to their diet. This combination of different food types in the Sri Lankan meal considers one of the healthiest ways of eating in the world.
There are some popular delicious foods you shouldn’t miss in Sri Lanka. Here we have summarized the best delightful dishes you can taste in Sri Lanka.
1. Milk Rice
Breakfast considers the most important meal of the day. Everybody tries to taste some nourishing, wholesome food for their breakfast. Milk rice or Kiribath is a popular breakfast food item in Sri Lanka. It is a traditional dish essential for any auspicious moment or festival. Milk rice prepared by adding thick coconut milk to the boiled rice with the required amount of salt. Then it cuts into diamond shape pieces.
Milk rice is so yummy with a milky taste and soft, porridge-like texture. Since it has a milky taste, it is a favorite food among babies and kids. Adults usually taste milk rice with some chili paste, a relish made with red onions and chilies. This is a quite tasty combination and one of the must-try Sri Lankan food.
2. String Hoppers
String Hoppers are a good choice for the breakfast. It serves along with some curries and spicy coconut sambol. You can select white or red string hoppers with your preferred curry. Usually, chicken curry, dhal curry, egg curry, or potato curry serves along with string hoppers.
You need a curry with some gravy to mix with string hoppers. The best combination for string hoppers is a mild curry and spicy coconut sambol. You need to mix well curries and sambol with string hoppers, before tasting. Don’t forget to taste this wonderfully tasty Sri Lankan food and you’ll definitely love it.
3. Vegan Curries
Sri Lankan lunch is always rice and curries. It is a traditional meal following history. You’ll find rice with vegan curries, seafood, meat, and side dishes on the lunch menus. There are lots of vegan curries are available in Sri Lanka. Most of the vegan curries make from cooking vegetables with spices and adding coconut milk. It gives an aromatic, creamy curry. They are delicious with a nice aroma and flavor. When plain rice mix with gravy of the curries, it gives a delectable yummy taste.
Among the vegan curries, dhal curry is one of the staple dishes in the country. It is one of the most common curries and a must-try Sri Lankan food. This excellent dish goes well with anything, from rice, string hoppers, bread, or roti. Dhal curry is not spicy and even kids love it.
A typical Sri Lankan meal contains more than three vegan curries. There are many other delicious Sri Lankan vegan dishes available. You can check them in this post.
4. Seafood Dishes
As an island abundant with fresh seafood, Sri Lankan meal always contains seafood dishes. The most common one is fish curry. Fish curry can prepare in many ways. Spicy fish curry prepares by adding a lot of chilies, pepper powder, and Garcinia paste. Fish Ambul Thiyal is Tuna fish cooked in a special mixture of spices. Yellow fish curry makes by cooking fish with coconut milk. In either way, fish curry tastes so good.
Sri Lanka is famous for prawns, crabs, oysters, squids, and lobsters. These seafood are absolutely great, and you’ll find it tastier than anywhere in the world. Beach hotels offer the best seafood dishes on the island. You’ll find grilled and barbecue seafood such as tiger prawns, red snappers, clams, and mussels. Don’t forget to taste these freshly cooked delicacies served in the beach restaurants.
Sri Lanka is a seafood paradise and Seafood is one of the top must-try Sri Lankan food. You can see all the details about Sri Lankan seafood in this post.
5. Meat Dishes
Spicy meat dish is an essential part of the Sri Lankan meal. Most Sri Lankans prefer chicken curry as their favorite meat dish. You can select either beef, mutton, or pork curries available in Sri Lankan restaurants.
Spicy chicken curry is one of the most popular foods and must-try Sri Lankan food. Chicken cooks with a lot of spices and herbs. Chili powder, pepper powder, roasted and unroasted curry powder add to get the nice flavor. Garlic, ginger, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, as well as some herbs, add for a nice aroma. This is a mouthwatering dish with a heavenly taste for spicy food lovers.
If you like beef, pork, or mutton curries, they are also delicious. Since a lot of spices add to prepare these meat dishes, they are rich in spicy flavor. Meat dishes go along well with rice or any other main course. If you can tolerate spices, meat dishes are the best delicacies to taste in Sri Lanka.
6. Side Dishes
Side dishes are an important part of the Sri Lankan food scene. They use to enhance the appetite, hence called rice pullers. Among Sri Lankan side dishes, spicy coconut sambol is an iconic Sri Lankan side dish. Coconut sambol is a top must-try Sri Lankan food. It makes by mixing freshly grated coconut with chili powder, salt, onions, and a bit of lime juice. It goes well with rice, string hoppers, bread, roti, or any other main course.
Deep-fried papadams always accompany Sri Lankan meals as a side dish. This crispy food is quite popular throughout the country. Especially kids love it the most. Don’t forget to help you with some good servings of crunchy papadams in Sri Lanka.
Side dishes are an essential part of Sri Lankan meals and you can read more about Sri Lankan side dishes in this post.
7. Savory Rice Dishes
Although plain white or red rice is the common dish, you’ll find several savory rice dishes in Sri Lanka. These rice dishes are colorful and aromatic, with a nice flavor. Among Sri Lankan savory rice dishes, yellow rice, seafood rice, and biriyani rice are the most delicious ones. Definitely, you’ll love savory rice dishes than plain rice.
If you like to learn more about Sri Lankan savory rice dishes, you can find them in this post.
8. Kottu
Sri Lankan dinner is the most special meal of the day. People use to prepare something different for dinner, rather than tasting the usual rice and curries. Nowadays, street food stalls sell different varieties of dinner food items in Sri Lanka. Among the dinner food items, kottu roti is an extremely popular Sri Lankan dinner food. It is one of the top must-try Sri Lankan food on the island. It is widely available in street food stalls in the evening.
Kottu is a combination of shredded pieces of thin dough and vegetables with a choice of meat. You can select your favorite choice among several kottu varieties from vegetable, chicken, beef, egg, or cheese. This yummy dish is one of the most delicious dinner food items not miss in Sri Lanka.
`9. Egg Hoppers
Egg Hoppers can consider the most delicious dinner food in Sri Lanka. They are a heavenly meal for food lovers. Hoppers cook in small rounded pans, so it is thick and soft on the bottom, and thin and crunchy around the edges. An egg adds to the middle of the hopper and a pinch of black pepper and salt adds for more taste. Try freshly cooked warm egg hoppers and you’ll definitely love it.
10. Pittu
Pittu has become a popular dinner food item in Sri Lanka. It is a combination of rice flour and grated coconut steamed in a special pittu maker. It looks beautiful on the dinner table, with its unique cylindrical shape. You can taste this wonderful dinner food item with fresh coconut milk, chili paste, and spicy meat or fish curry. Sri Lankans love this beautiful yummy food, which can prepare from such simple ingredients.
There are many other varieties of dinner food are available in Sri Lanka. If you like to read more about Sri Lankan dinner food items, you can find it in this post.
11. Sweets
Sweet treats have their own place in the Sri Lankan food scene. Sri Lankans don’t forget to taste a yummy dessert after the meal. Among them, Watalappam is the favorite dessert among Sri Lankans. It is a kind of steamed pudding prepared with jaggery, eggs, coconut milk, and cashew nuts. Spices such as cardamom, and vanilla used to enhance the taste and aroma. They are rich in a sweet and creamy taste.
If you like to learn more about Sri Lankan desserts and sweets, you can find them in this article.
12. Short eats
Short eats are a major part of Sri Lankan cuisine. These baked snacks are the best friend of travelers. When the time doesn’t permit for a lingering meal, grab some short eats and you are ready to travel within minutes. They will take away your hunger pangs at any time of day and help you to save lots of time. Tasting yummy short eats is something Sri Lankan travelers enjoy the most.
Cutlets, patties, pastries, and many more savory and spicy short eats are available in Sri Lanka. You can find more details about them in this post.
13. Snacks & Savory bites
Crispy savory bites are a good choice to satisfy your cravings at any time of the day. It gives a treat to your taste buds. There are lots of tasty snacks to select in Sri Lanka. These snacks are a mix of cuisines of all the different nationalities that live on the island. There is a wide array of deep-fried, roasted, and devilled savory bites, which are authentic to the country. Most of them are highly famous as street foods in Sri Lanka.
Among the Sri Lankan savory bites, roasted cashews, peanuts, and chickpeas are completely worthy to try. Roasted cashews are highly aromatic and flavorful, you may want to taste them more and more. Your Sri Lankan trip won’t be completed without tasting yummy roasted cashews. It is one of the most famous Sri Lankan products worthy as a delicious souvenir for your family.
If you like to learn more about Sri Lankan snacks and savory bites, you can find them in this article.
These Sri Lankan food items are unique and delightful, and you cannot find such taste anywhere in the world. There is no doubt that you’ll enjoy a Sri Lankan food tour that is a gastronomical adventure for food lovers. Enjoy the flavorsome Sri Lankan food and discover new tastes. Happy meal to everybody!
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