BUILD YOUR RASA KITCHEN

Build your Sri Lankan Kitchen

RASA KITCHEN MUST HAVES

TOOLS & EQUIPMENT

Having the right equipment in your kitchen tool box can make or break your dishes..

Coconut Scraper – A scraper allows you to easily carve fresh coconut straight from its shell, as opposed to using a fork or spoon which can be very time consuming. Although coconut scrapers are not usually found in your typical western grocery store you can purchase one from your local asian grocery store.

Rice Cooker – To make rice, duh. Since Sri Lankan cooking is very heavy on rice, using a rice cooker makes it that much more simple. No need to keep a watchful eye on a pot of boiling rice, when you can make it in a cooker and have perfectly cooked rice in 20mins! There are many rice cookers to choose from with all fancy features, but I always found a simple design is the best way to go.

Clay Pot | Athiliya – These are cooking pots made from hardened clay and are used in many South Asians cusines. Using a clay pot gives the food an earthy flavour and allows for steady and gentle cooking (especially great for making meat based curries). Living in a western country, these can be very difficult to come by and not exactly sold at your local Walmart. I would recommend checking out these Tamil stores: Era Supermarket. Not expensive ($15-$20), after purchasing it you will need to fill it with water and let it sit for several days to remove the clay flavouring. Just to note, these pots can only be used on gas stoves or open fires, coil or radiator stove tops will not work.

Coconut Wooden Spoons – Handmade spoons are especially common in Sri Lanka. Made from a hollowed out coconut shell coupled with a smooth wooden handle. Coconut or wooden spoons are easily superior to regular cooking utensils as they do not overheat and are comfortable to hold when mixing your ingredients. Once you make the switch to handmade spoons, trust me, you’ll never go back!

Mortar and Pestle | Wangediya & Mol Gaha – Also known as a wangediya and the mol gaha is essential for creating some elite flavour in your dishes. A mortar and pestle can be used to crush spice seeds and herbs together. As opposed to simply cutting, crushing your herbs releases a lot of flavour and creates a well combined spice mix. Although this tool is used frequently in Sri Lankan cooking, it is not unique to this cuisine. I would definitely recommend it anytime you need to mix spices or crush seeds.