Lightbody Kim - Alphabet Cooking: S is for Sri Lankan

S is for Sri Lankan ingredients banana leaves are used as plates in parts of Sri Lanka as the leaves are large, waterproof and flexible. You can buy these from specialist shops brown mustard seeds are widely used in Asian cooking, and when fried, impart a nutty flavour curry leaves are dark green, shiny, fragrant leaves from a tree belonging to the citrus family. They have a nutty flavour when fried in oil. Try to use fresh leaves if you can find them fenugreek seeds are used as a spice and have a sharp pungent taste ghee is clarified butter and has a high smoke point with a nutty flavour gram flour is also called chickpea flour and is made from ground chickpeas. It is good for making flatbreads and coating foods, such as pakoras jackfruit is grown all over South and Southeast Asia. It has a distinctive sweet, fruity smell.

In Sri Lanka it is used in curries as it has a meat-like texture when it is young and unripe jaggery is an unrefined sugar made from cane sugar that has been reduced down and set into blocks. It imparts a rich flavour to dishes Maldive fish is boiled, smoked and dried tuna produced in the Maldives and is used in cooking for its distinctive flavour. If you cant find it use shrimp paste or fish sauce instead palm sugar is made from the sap of the sugar palm and adds a rich and creamy sweetness to curries and desserts rice flour is made from ground raw rice and is used to make appams string hopper press is used to make string hoppers, a traditional breakfast dish in Sri Lanka. The string hoppers are usually served with a coconut broth tamarind is a fruit shaped like a long bean. It has a tart, sour, sweet flavour and is used as a key ingredient in curries turmeric is a bright yellow spice with lots of health benefits and is a major ingredient in curries. Use carefully as it stains urad dhal is made from black lentils.

When the lentils are skinned and split they are creamy white. They are high in fibre and are used in lentil fritters (Some Sri Lankan ingredients are available from large supermarkets or specialist Asian grocery shops. However, it is also worth checking online through suppliers such as spicesofindia.co.uk or theasiancookshop.co.uk)

ingredients 220g (7oz/generous 1 cup) white urad dhal lentils, washed 5cm (2in) ginger, peeled and minced 2 green chillies, deseeded and minced 5 curry leaves 1 tsp salt 1 litre (32fl oz/4 cups) vegetable oil, for frying soak Cover the lentils with twice their volume in warm water and leave to soak for 4 hours. blitz Rinse the lentils and drain, then blitz in a food processor to a thick, dough-like paste. Add the ginger, chillies, curry leaves and salt and mix. roll Line a tray with clingfilm (plastic wrap).

Using wet hands, break off large walnut-sized portions of the dough and roll into 10 balls. Make a hole in the middle of each one and place on the prepared tray. deep-fry Heat the oil in a large wok to 160C (320F), then reduce the heat to medium. Fry the fritters in batches of 2 for 5 minutes on each side until golden brown and crisp. Drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper (paper towel).

ingredients 160g (5oz/1 cups) rice flour 140g (5oz/generous 1 cup) gram flour tsp salt tsp chilli powder tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) 1 litre (32fl oz/4 cups) vegetable oil, for frying mix Mix the flours, salt, chilli powder and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl. ingredients 160g (5oz/1 cups) rice flour 140g (5oz/generous 1 cup) gram flour tsp salt tsp chilli powder tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) 1 litre (32fl oz/4 cups) vegetable oil, for frying mix Mix the flours, salt, chilli powder and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl.

Gradually add 150ml (5fl oz/ cup) water and bring together to form a dough. heat Heat the oil in a large wok to 180C (355F), making sure to fill it no more than half full. press Transfer small sections of the dough to a murukku/string hopper press using a star-shaped plate attachment, and carefully press out 23 circles of dough directly into the hot oil. Do not overfill the pan. fry Fry for 23 minutes until golden brown and crisp, then drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper (paper towel). Repeat.

Store in an airtight container for 34 days.

ingredients 300g (10oz/2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour 1 tsp salt 45ml (1fl oz/3 Tbsp) vegetable oil 300g (10oz) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-cm (-in) chunks 2 Tbsp vegetable oil 5 curry leaves 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced 2.5cm (1in) ginger, minced 1 leek, thinly sliced 1 Tbsp tsp chilli powder 1 tsp salt 100g (3oz/scant 1 cup) frozen peas, defrosted juice of lime 1 litre (32fl oz/4 cups) vegetable oil, for frying mix Mix the flour and salt together in a large bowl, then add the oil and 125ml (4fl oz/ cup) water and bring together into a stiff dough. Knead briefly for a few minutes on a work surface. Return to the bowl, cover with clingfilm (plastic wrap) and leave to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. simmer Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Add the potatoes and simmer for 12 minutes, or until just cooked.