Monday 1 May 2017

Sri Lanka: The Cookbook - Review & Giveaway


Sri Lanka: the Cookbook
I've only recently discovered the joys of Sri Lankan food, so I was delighted to be offered a copy of this book for review. Sri Lanka: the Cookbook gives a comprehensive introduction to Sri Lankan cuisine and explains the ingredients and cooking techniques.

Written by husband and wife team Prakash Sivanathan and Niranjala Ellawala, the book shows their knowledge of and passion for the cuisine of their former homeland:

“My wife and I have lived in London for many years, but I was born a Tamil in the Jaffna peninsula in the north of Sri Lanka, and Niranjala is a Sinhalese from the south. Between us, we have a deep understanding and love of the unique styles of cooking that together make up our island’s cuisine. We hope this provides a record of Sri Lankan history and diversity for generations to come.”

One thing I must say is that this probably isn't a book for novice cooks as the ingredients lists tend to be longer/more exotic and some of the recipes are a little more complicated than other books I've reviewed. You also need to be fan of coconut/coconut milk as similar to Thai food, these feature heavily. Having said that, if you already have a well-stocked spice rack and are used to cooking Indian or Thai food, I'm sure you'll love this book.

I also need to point out that this is not an exclusively vegetarian book, but as Sri Lankan food is naturally vegetarian-friendly, many of the recipes are either vegetarian, pescatarian or easy to adapt. All of the recipes are marked as to their suitability for vegetarians, but I did notice a few non-vegetarian (fish-derived) ingredients in some of these. They are easy to omit though, without losing any the authentic flavour of the dishes.

I've only tried out a few of the recipes so far, but I particularly liked the pol roti (spicy, coconut flatbreads) and poosanikai kari (pumpkin curry), both of which were fairly easy to make, but tasted very different to the Indian-style food I often cook.

SRI LANKA: THE COOKBOOK is published by Frances Lincoln, 6th May 2017, RRP £20.00
Also available from Amazon and other book shops.


Pin It

25 comments:

  1. I like adding mustard seeds as a spice to hot things up :) x

    ReplyDelete
  2. i would say smoked paprika

    ReplyDelete
  3. I put garlic in everything, but I love tumeric for color and taste

    ReplyDelete
  4. garlic as it is so easy to incorporate in every dish

    ReplyDelete
  5. Smoked paprika for me! x

    ReplyDelete
  6. Cumin seeds.

    Oh I am so jealous you got to review this cookbook. I love Sri Lankan cuisine and have been looking for a honest down to earth homely cookbook. Fingers crossed x

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ginger - brilliant in both sweet and savoury

    ReplyDelete
  8. Mine has to be cinnamon

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love cumin too, that smell when you lightly toast the seeds, just divine. This looks really interesting, I know nothing about Sri Lankan food at all.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Cinnamon, lovely in sweet and savoury

    ReplyDelete
  11. Toss up for me between ginger and cinnamon :) Probably ginger

    ReplyDelete
  12. I love cooking Indian food and use a lot of garam masala as it has lots of my favourite things in :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Paprika! I chuck it in with everything!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ginger and garlic are my favourite s like black pepper though

    ReplyDelete
  15. I use mild chilli powder in everything!!

    ReplyDelete
  16. We love cinnamon as it takes back to when we whent to the USA for a long time.

    ReplyDelete
  17. we love ginger, we use it in Indian and Oriental savoury dishes and in desserts

    ReplyDelete
  18. I love, love, love star anise

    ReplyDelete
  19. Cinmamon - lovely in sweet and savoury

    ReplyDelete

Thanks very much for your comment. I love hearing your opinions, so please rest assured that genuine comments and competition entries will be visible after approval. This may take 24-48 hours, depending on how hectic my work/home life is at the time!

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...