Time is right for Sri Lankan spice

• Published date: 30 March 2022
• Publication title: Otago Daily Times (New Zealand)

A new book out by Australian cook and restaurateur O Tama Carey Lanka Food: Serendipity and Spice is just the thing to get the tastebuds tingling and inspire a new kitchen journey

Carey, whose mother was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in Perth, has travelled in Sri Lanka extensively and around the world, settling back in Sydney where she opened her own restaurant Lankan Filling Station in 2018.

Its aim was to serve the pancake-like Sri Lankan staple hoppers that started her food journey after first tasting them aged 18 but has since expanded to include a range of dishes.

As well as sharing recipes from her heritage, as well as ones from her travels and her own devising, the book includes essays on the history of Sri Lanka, an island similar in size to Tasmania, on the edge of the Indian Ocean below India, its culture and her own food journey.

Pork belly curry

This dish is straight thievery from my mother; the recipe is almost exactly as she showed me. It all came about because of a cazuela that she bought in Spain and made me carry around the world for months. Back home it became her favourite dish to cook in, and was the reason this slightly dry pork belly curry came to be cooked in the oven. This is a rich, very slow-cooked fatty curry; the pork belly is unctuous and meltingly tender with a little sauce that is hot and a touch sweet.

Serves6-8

1kg piece pork belly, skin on, chilled

30g coconut oil

340g diced red onion

2 long red chillies, finely chopped

20cm pandan leaf, tied into a knot

4g curry leaves

30g finely chopped garlic

20g finely chopped ginger

40g Red curry powder (see below)

14 cardamom pods, bruised

3 star anise

2 cinnamon quills

salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

25g tamarind concentrate

150ml coconut cream

Method

Preheat the oven to 150degC.

Cut the pork belly into 5 x 1.5 cm slices and set aside. It is easier to do this when the meat is cold.

Melt the coconut oil in a large flameproof casserole dish or baking dish over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chilli, pandan and curry leaves and continue cooking and stirring for another minute or so. Stir in the garlic and ginger, then turn up the heat before adding the curry powder and whole spices. Keep cooking until the spices darken and start to stick to the pan, about 3-4 minutes.

Add the pork and stir to coat and brown the meat for about 6-8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix the tamarind and 450ml water, then pour this into the dish with the pork and use a spoon to scrape the edges and the bottom of the pan. Add the coconut cream and bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes, then remove from heat, cover with lid or foil and place it in the oven to cook for 3 hours, removing it to stir a few times.

After 3 hours, turn the oven down to 110degC and remove the lid or foil. By this stage, the gravy should be mostly dried out. Let the pork cook for a further 50-60 minutes uncovered, stirring once or twice. Once its cooked the pork pieces will be looking nicely roasted, there will be little gravy left in the pan and the whole dish will have a lovely oiliness to it.

Red curry powder

...