• Latest
  • Trending

Hot Hot Sambol

July 1, 2011
Auto Draft

Poson Poya

June 9, 2022
Seasonal Fruities in Our Island Nation

Seasonal Fruities in Our Island Nation

June 9, 2022
Poson and the Mihintale Season

Poson and the Mihintale Season

June 9, 2022
Wine, Hiking & Well-Being

Wine, Hiking & Well-Being

June 8, 2022
Behind the Scenes Green Chefs

Behind the Scenes Green Chefs

June 8, 2022
THE LOOM IS HER GURU

THE LOOM IS HER GURU

May 17, 2022
The Glory of Vesak and The Teaching of Buddha

The Glory of Vesak and The Teaching of Buddha

May 17, 2022
Juicy Tropical Treats: Star Fruits

Juicy Tropical Treats: Star Fruits

May 17, 2022
VISION CARE CELEBRATES 30 YEARS OF REVOLUTIONIZING SRI LANKA’S EYE CARE INDUSTRY

VISION CARE CELEBRATES 30 YEARS OF REVOLUTIONIZING SRI LANKA’S EYE CARE INDUSTRY

May 13, 2022
Chilling in Arugambay

Chilling in Arugambay

May 13, 2022
MINISTRY OF CRAB RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF ASIA’S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS FOR THE EIGHTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR 

MINISTRY OF CRAB RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF ASIA’S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS FOR THE EIGHTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR 

May 17, 2022
Safilo Group hosts ‘Buying Day’ marking Carrera’s 65 years of Design and Quality

Safilo Group hosts ‘Buying Day’ marking Carrera’s 65 years of Design and Quality

May 14, 2022
Retail
Monday, July 4, 2022
Subscription
Advertise
  • Home
  • Issues
    • 2022
      • January 2022
      • February 2022
      • March 2022
      • April 2022
      • May 2022
      • June 2022
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Archive
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

Hot Hot Sambol

by
in Features, Zesty
0 0
0

 

An array of of sambols; 1-Lunu miris, 2-seeni sambol, 3-coconut sambol, 4-biling (bilimbi) sambol, 5-kunisso (sprat) sambol, 6-winged bean sambol, 7-radish sambol, 8-nelum ala (lotus root) sambol, 9-kohila ala sambol (Location: Nuga Gama, Cinnamon Grand)

It’s a dish that is often noticed only by its absence. It doesn’t get the same attention that more flamboyant dishes do, but without that tangy dish of coconut sambol or lunu miris, would milk rice or hoppers ever taste the same? Unobtrusive but tasty, the sambol is the almost inevitable accompaniment for most Sri Lankan meals.

Words  Chiranthi Rajapakse

Defined simply, a sambol is a spicy relish served as a side dish. Sambols can be made with various ingredients but in Sri Lanka a sambol often includes red chillies, onions, coconut and maldive fish mixed together. Numerous variations can be created by the addition of different vegetables and seasonings.

Many different methods exist to prepare sambols, however tracking them down is another matter. The inventiveness of most Sri Lankan cooks is rivalled only by their vagueness when it comes to recording recipes. A query for recipes is usually met with the vague answer of “…just add a little bit of this and a bit of that and mix together…” which is not the most informative start. Also since sambols are such a staple part of Sri Lankan food, the assumption is that everyone must know how to make a sambol (presumably from birth!).

The interesting thing about the sambol is its versatility; it manages to invade every strata of society.

Possibly the most efficient way of learning how to make one is to watch. There are numerous different types of sambols depending on what ingredients are chosen. The basic idea is to mix the ingredients finely together to create a spicy dish that is usually eaten uncooked. To take a common example, coconut sambol is made from a mixture of coconut, onions, green chillies, garlic, chillie powder and maldive fish. The ingredients are all crushed and mixed thoroughly together until the coconut turns an even shade of red.

Written down it sounds the easiest thing in the world. In practice it can range from bland to delicious; most cooks claim that the trick is to get the correct balance of ingredients. Nowadays a grinder or chopper is often used to mix the ingredients but purists will insist that grinding using a mirisgala (grinding stone) or mortar and pestle and mixing by hand is best. Depending on whether you have the inclination to labour over your cooking or not, you can take your pick.

Coconut sambol is just the start, there are many other types of sambol. Carrot, minchi, gotukola, winged bean, radish, karapincha, nelum ala, katta sambol, luunu, seenisambol, lunu miris (chillie onion sambol)… there is a long list. Gotukola, minchi, winged bean and karapincha are all leaf-based sambols. Seeni sambol differs somewhat in preparation from the other types, since it involves the frying of onions in shallow oil. Seeni sambol and lunu miris are popular accompaniments for hoppers or milkrice while the leaf-based sambols are often eaten with rice.

Lunu miris is prepared by grinding chillie pieces and chillie powder together, adding maldive fish and onions and combining to form a paste. For many people the sambol is an essential dish; in fact many Sri Lankans declare that without it a meal would not taste the same. Ash plantain and pumpkin are examples of somewhat less common types of sambols which are popular among the Tamil community.

The interesting thing about the sambol is its versatility; it manages to invade every strata of society. A stop at a small shop for breakfast anywhere in the island will bring you the inevitable roti and lunu miris while a buffet at an upmarket hotel will find the sambol displayed here as well. The setting may change but the sambol remains the same. Perhaps one reason for this wide appeal is the fact that most of the ingredients can be easily found and preparation is relatively inexpensive. The word sambol, sambolaya (Sinhala) or sambal (Tamil) has become part of popular culture, with restaurants adopting it as their name.

Meals are more than just food in Sri Lanka. A meal is a method of social interaction; a way of extending hospitality. Families meet over meals, it’s where discussion takes place. Among it all the sambol lurks unobtrusively. There is something quintessentially Sri Lankan about it. It’s mixed up, spicy and unpredictable – depending on the mood of the chef it can range from mild to explosively hot – you never know quite what to expect. In fact, quite like Sri Lanka itself.

[nggallery id=55]

TweetShareShare

Search

No Result
View All Result

Recent News

Auto Draft

Poson Poya

Seasonal Fruities in Our Island Nation

Seasonal Fruities in Our Island Nation

Poson and the Mihintale Season

Poson and the Mihintale Season

Explore Sri Lanka

Explore Sri Lanka Online, the web edition of Sri Lanka’s leading monthly corporate publication. Founded in 1996, the magazine currently has a distribution of over 6,000 copies island-wide.

Recent News

  • Poson Poya
  • Seasonal Fruities in Our Island Nation
  • Poson and the Mihintale Season

Find Us

Address : BT Options 536,
R. A. De Mel Mawatha,
Colombo 03,
Sri Lanka
(+94 11) 259 7991
(+94) 715 134 134
info@btoptions.com
btoptions.com

  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy

© 2022 Explore Sri Lanka | Designed by Lithic Labs

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Issues
    • 2022
      • January 2022
      • February 2022
      • March 2022
      • April 2022
      • May 2022
      • June 2022
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Archive

© 2022 Explore Sri Lanka | Designed by Lithic Labs

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In