• Latest
Sri Lanka’s Gram Awards

Sri Lanka’s Gram Awards

December 2, 2022
Investec Cape Town Art Fair

Investec Cape Town Art Fair

March 3, 2023
Discipline and Precepts are Favorable for Self-Development

Discipline and Precepts are Favorable for Self-Development

March 3, 2023
DY Patil University Centre of Excellence Opens in Navi Mumbai

DY Patil University Centre of Excellence Opens in Navi Mumbai

March 3, 2023
A Walk Down Cobblers’ Street

A Walk Down Cobblers’ Street

March 3, 2023
The Colombo Cultural Show: A Soiree into Sri Lanka’s Heart

The Colombo Cultural Show: A Soiree into Sri Lanka’s Heart

February 7, 2023
Kandy Central Market: The epitome of local ambiance

Kandy Central Market: The epitome of local ambiance

February 7, 2023
The Art of Local Writing

The Art of Local Writing

February 7, 2023
Carnival Magic

Carnival Magic

February 7, 2023
Ponniyin Selvan 1: Leveraging the Lure of History and the Power of Storytelling

Ponniyin Selvan 1: Leveraging the Lure of History and the Power of Storytelling

January 11, 2023
Rumination and Emotional Process

Rumination and Emotional Process

January 13, 2023
Segar Represents Sri Lanka in Asia Art Bienniale in Dhaka

Segar Represents Sri Lanka in Asia Art Bienniale in Dhaka

January 11, 2023
Good Conversations Start with Mlesna

Good Conversations Start with Mlesna

January 11, 2023
Retail
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Subscription
Advertise
  • Home
  • Issues
    • 201_
      • 2010
        • January 2010
        • February 2010
        • March 2010
        • April 2010
        • May 2010
        • June 2010
        • July 2010
        • August 2010
        • September 2010
        • October 2010
        • November 2010
        • December 2010
      • 2011
        • January 2011
        • February 2011
        • March 2011
        • April 2011
        • May 2011
        • June 2011
        • July 2011
        • August 2011
        • September 2011
        • October 2011
        • November 2011
        • December 2011
      • 2012
        • January 2012
        • February 2012
        • March 2012
        • April 2012
        • May 2012
        • June 2012
        • July 2012
        • August 2012
        • September 2012
        • October 2012
        • November 2012
        • December 2012
      • 2013
        • January 2013
        • February 2013
        • March 2013
        • April 2013
        • May 2013
        • June 2013
        • July 2013
        • August 2013
        • September 2013
        • October 2013
        • November 2013
        • December 2013
      • 2014
        • January 2014
        • February 2014
        • March 2014
        • April 2014
        • May 2014
        • June 2014
        • July 2014
        • August 2014
        • September 2014
        • October 2014
        • November 2014
        • December 2014
      • 2015
        • January 2015
        • February 2015
        • March 2015
        • April 2015
        • May 2015
        • June 2015
        • July 2015
        • August 2015
        • September 2015
        • October 2015
        • November 2015
        • December 2015
      • 2016
        • January 2016
        • February 2016
        • March 2016
        • April 2016
        • May 2016
        • June 2016
        • July 2016
        • August 2016
        • September 2016
        • October 2016
        • November 2016
        • December 2016
      • 2017
        • January 2017
        • February 2017
        • March 2017
        • April 2017
        • May 2017
        • June 2017
        • July 2017
        • August 2017
        • September 2017
        • October 2017
        • November 2017
        • December 2017
      • 2018
        • January 2018
        • February 2018
        • March 2018
        • April 2018
        • May 2018
        • June 2018
        • July 2018
        • August 2018
        • November 2018
        • December 2018
      • 2019
        • January 2019
        • February 2019
        • March 2019
        • April 2019
        • May 2019
        • June 2019
        • July 2019
        • August 2019
        • September 2019
        • October 2019
        • November 2019
        • December 2019
    • 202_
      • 2020
        • January 2020
        • February 2020
        • March 2020
        • September 2020
        • October 2020
        • November 2020
        • December 2020
      • 2021
        • January 2021
        • February 2021
        • March 2021
        • April 2021
        • May 2021
        • June 2021
        • July 2021
        • August 2021
        • September 2021
        • October 2021
        • November 2021
        • December 2021
      • 2022
        • January 2022
        • February 2022
        • March 2022
        • April 2022
        • May 2022
        • June 2022
        • July 2022
        • August 2022
        • September 2022
        • October 2022
        • November 2022
        • December 2022
      • 2023
        • January 2023
        • February 2023
        • March 2023
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Archive
  • Find Us on Magzter
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

Sri Lanka’s Gram Awards

in Featured, July 2015
0 0
0
Serve the chick pea masala on plate
Serve the chick pea masala on plate

One thing’s for sure, Sri Lankans are nutty over peas. And see a world of good in a grain of gram. As committed pea poppers of the Munch Bunch, they go batty over giving the daily gram workout for the jaws and a pep up pea for the heart. For, if there is one virtue in this addiction, it is that it does wonders for the heart and gives a boost to general health.

Words and Photographs Manu Gunasena

Coming on top of the peas in Sri Lanka’s Gram Awards, is the best selling King of Gram, the Garbanzo chick pea or better known as bola kadala or jumbo kadala. In the sidewalk gram kiosks, found at almost every street corner in cities and towns, it is the fastest moving gram among pea heads, say vendors. It is available either roasted or roasted and laced with chillies or just plain boiled.

The cool thing about it, as it is with all peas, is that it’s so simple to make. Just take some bola kadala and soak it in water for over six hours. Then boil it with a dash of salt. Deep fry the kadala and thereafter spice it up with some chilli powder and salt. If you prefer a bit more panache, and wish to concoct it with a fiery flamboyance, then pour some oil into a pan, add some diced coconut, karapincha or curry leaves, some pieces of red dry chilli and some mustard seeds and sauté it. As the eye tearing aroma wafts, add the boiled kadala to the mixture together with a dash of salt. Stir it and serve it in a bowl and Hey Peasto! You have the Garbanzo Masala: the ideal accompaniment to an evening round of sundowners or simply as a tasty TV snack.

Earning high points in the health column in the pea stakes is the black eyed cowpea, a small oval shaped, soft textured, creamy white bean with a black eye. It belongs to the pea genus and comes from a family that includes the sow-pea, the yardlong bean, the asparagus bean and the Chinese long bean. There is also the red cowpea.

The black eye cowpea is strong in fibre and iron and comes packed with a flavour that virtually negates the need for spices to add taste. It is rich in potassium and has a good amount of calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. It contains essential minerals and vitamins A, B6 and C and is low in fat and calories. It is also known to reduce the plasma cholesterol in your body and, along with the red, black, brown and light cowpeas, is rich in anti-oxidants. There is also good news for weight watchers and those presently following diets to beat the flab. This is because it provides a high level of protein and thus acts as a vital supplement to any diet. And for those who count the calories, every 100 grams equals 44 calories.

Here’s how to cook them. First clean the cowpeas well and soak it overnight in water. Then boil it with salt to taste. Add some scraped coconut if you wish or even sugar if you prefer and eat. It’s an ideal starter for the day, since it contains high levels of amino acids similar to cereals.

It can also be made into a curry. Take the boiled cowpea. Mix with curry powder, turmeric, chilli powder. Keep aside. Then sauté a few curry leaves, rampe leaves with onions and tomato. Add the cowpea. Cover and cook for about fifteen minutes. Add salt, coconut milk and simmer for a further ten minutes and serve.

Moving on to another kind of pea, it is one not only munched but eaten mashed. Meet the kadala parrippu, or the chick pea dhal and its close cousin the Bataan. Both can be roasted and eaten spiced with chilli powder or they can be made into a curry in the same manner as the cowpeas. But their value is far more than being a mere tasty pea crunch. They constitute one of the prime ingredients in a South Indian snack which has won Sri Lanka’s taste buds—the dhal vadai.

This round shaped cutlet is made by first soaking the yellow dhal chick peas or Bataan for six hours. Divide the peas into two piles. Grind one part into a smooth paste and the other into a chunky paste. Add a few whole peas to the chunky mixture. Crush some curry leaves and place it in a bowl along with the peas, chillies, shallots, ginger and salt. Add the chickpea flour and work it into a dough with your hands. Take a golf ball size amount of the paste and shape it into a half or one inch thick patty and deep fry it till golden brown.

Another similar South Indian snack, which has curried favour in Sri Lanka and complements the dhal vadai is the doughnut Ulundu vadai. It is made from ulundu dhal, or Orid Dhal. After the usual process of soaking, these tiny white peas are pounded or processed in a food processor and made into a paste. Shape parts of the paste into round shapes leaving a hole in the middle. Add cut pieces of green chilli, together with cut shallots, curry leaves and salt and mix well with the paste. Then stir fry it until the required brown colour is achieved. And there you have it: the vadai with a hole in it.

Mung beans come packed with dietary fibre, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, riboflavin, folate and copper

At the ever popular South Indian restaurants, Ulundu is extensively used as the base for a wide variety of dishes. Dosa and idli are two very popular dishes that are generally eaten with a vegetable curry.

Now let the curtain lift to unveil the mainstay gram that provides a hearty breakfast to millions of Sri Lankan homes. It’s the great green gram, better known as Mung. Green in colour and minute in size, its appearance beguiles the important role it plays in the food stakes. Easy on the pocket, tasty on the palette and simple to make, these little green peas are first soaked in water overnight and boiled in the morning. It is then served without any further fuss with a lump of grated coconut and a hot mixture of chillies and onions known as Lunu Miris. The combination is perfect and no extra frills are needed to enhance the taste.

It is also extremely nutritious. These little beans come packed with dietary fibre, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, riboflavin, folate and copper. It is also extremely low in saturated fat and sodium and also low in cholesterol. Mung sprouts can also be used to make a light consommé while its stock, obtained through soaking, is consumed for its medicinal value.

All these peas, strutting on the centre stage like peacocks—and there are many waiting in the wings, green peas, kollu, kidney beans, to name a few—play their roles in their own inimitable style. Some bag the star role, some hug dual roles and some make do with cameos, but all take their bows on an equal footing and await your verdict with equal anticipation in Sri Lanka’s own Gram Awards. So why tarry? Pick now. And may peas be with you 

Tags: Crunchy
TweetShareShare

Search

No Result
View All Result

Recent News

Investec Cape Town Art Fair

Investec Cape Town Art Fair

Discipline and Precepts are Favorable for Self-Development

Discipline and Precepts are Favorable for Self-Development

DY Patil University Centre of Excellence Opens in Navi Mumbai

DY Patil University Centre of Excellence Opens in Navi Mumbai

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

  • Investec Cape Town Art Fair
  • Discipline and Precepts are Favorable for Self-Development
  • DY Patil University Centre of Excellence Opens in Navi Mumbai

Find Us

Explore Sri Lanka
20-2/1 Lauries Place Facing
R. A. De Mel Mawatha
Colombo 04
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
    • 201_
      • 2010
      • 2011
      • 2012
      • 2013
      • 2014
      • 2015
      • 2016
      • 2017
      • 2018
      • 2019
    • 202_
      • 2020
      • 2021
      • 2022
      • 2023
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Archive
  • Find Us on Magzter

© 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