The Sri Lankan meal is built around a large mound of rice in the center of the plate, surrounded by a constellation of small curries and sambols: a fish or lentil curry, a green vegetable, a grated mallung, a spicy coconut pol sambol, and a crispy papadum. You mix with your right hand, bite by bite, controlling the heat yourself. On the side, afternoon snacks (short eats) and festive sweets accompany Ceylon tea, the pride of the island.

Coconut milk (kiri), grated coconut, and the bouquet of island spices — true Ceylon cinnamon, cardamom, clove, curry leaves, and curry powder roasted until dark brown (the famous "dark roast" of the South) — mark almost every dish on the Sri Lankan table.