ExploFood · Asia
What to eat in Sri Lanka
Five dishes to try in Sri Lanka, the most typical first. Two are vegetarian.
Five dishes to try in Sri Lanka
Rice and curry
Plate of rice with several small curries of dhal, vegetables, fish or chicken and sambol.
How to have it: The everyday lunch; look for lunch-packet shops or small 'hotels' serving it from noon.
Kottu කොත්තු
Chopped flatbread stir-fried on a griddle with egg, vegetables, meat and curry gravy.
How to have it: An evening dish; follow the clanging of metal blades to a kottu stall after dark.
Hoppers ආප්ප
Bowl-shaped pancakes of fermented rice and coconut milk, crisp at the edges.
How to have it: Order an egg hopper with lunu miris chilli relish; made fresh at roadside stalls morning and evening.
String hoppers ඉඳිආප්ප
Nests of steamed rice-flour noodles served with dhal, coconut sambol and curry.
How to have it: Usually sold by the dozen for breakfast or dinner; ask for kiri hodi coconut gravy.
Lamprais
Rice cooked in stock, baked in a banana leaf with mixed-meat curry, frikkadels and sambol.
How to have it: A Dutch Burgher dish; Colombo bakeries and Burgher clubs often take orders a day ahead.
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Questions
What food is Sri Lanka famous for?
Rice and curry (plate of rice with several small curries of dhal, vegetables, fish or chicken and sambol) comes first on our list, followed by Kottu, Hoppers, String hoppers and Lamprais.
What is the national dish of Sri Lanka?
Ask ten people and you get several answers. The dish we put first for Sri Lanka is Rice and curry: plate of rice with several small curries of dhal, vegetables, fish or chicken and sambol. The everyday lunch; look for lunch-packet shops or small 'hotels' serving it from noon.
Which dishes in Sri Lanka are vegetarian?
Two of the five on this page are vegetarian as usually made: Hoppers and String hoppers. Recipes vary, so ask about stock, lard or fish sauce.
What street food should I try in Sri Lanka?
Kottu (chopped flatbread stir-fried on a griddle with egg, vegetables, meat and curry gravy).
How reliable is this list?
The dishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, where you can also tick off the ones you have tried. Recipes vary by region and by family, so take it as a starting point.
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Tick off every dish you try in Sri Lanka
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Get ExploDishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, with links to Wikipedia. Recipes and names vary by region.