Kottu with a traditional twist

Friday, 18 March 2011 11:34 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Cheranka Mendis

Kottu has always been a favourite among Sri Lankans but what was introduced at the Mount Lavinia Hotel on Tuesday was a unique blend of kottu, one that is totally made out of locally available products.

Instead of the rotti that completes the majority of the kottu dish, the team at Mount Lavinia Hotel led by Master Chef Pubilis introduces the almost-forgotten village ingredients such as karankoku, breadfruit, kohila and lotus yam.

“I have blended the traditional and authentic ingredients to deliver not only a distinctively unique taste but also a much healthier dining experience,” Chef Pubilis said.

“No one would think about taking jackfruit to be added on to something like kottu. For Sri Lankans kottu has always been a mixed dish with godamba rotti, vegetables and meat items. With these new additions we have introduced, not only would the diner experience something new and exciting, but also something that would cover health benefits as well.”

The kottu menu offers nine varieties of kottu – kos kottu (jack fruit), kohila kottu, nethrapalam (banana) kottu, bread fruit kottu, lotus yam kottu, corn on the cob kottu, polos kottu, karankoku kottu and pala (green leaves) kottu. Biling, tomato, capsicum, onions, corns, cinnamon, puwak mal, bean sprout and other such condiments are added to the dish.

Chef Pubilis stated that meat, egg and seafood are also added to the kottu. For vegetarians, the meats will be substituted with green leaves such as rath thampala, kankun, gotukola, mukunuwenna and bean sprouts. To add quantity, chefs at MLH add suduru samba rice and mani pittu.

“The dinner has medicinal and ayurvedic value to the meal and would rid the diners from piles and other indigestion problems,” he said.

Titled the ‘Healthy Kottu Festival,’ the experience falls under the hotel’s ‘We Dining’ a.k.a. ‘Ape Kema’ programme.

When cooking, one has to be careful to preserve the taste, smell and colour of the food being prepared, Chef Pubilis said. “We at Mount Lavinia Hotel take extra care to preserve the natural and healthy elements of the ingredients such as vegetables and fruits. Even when the kottu is prepared, we are careful to give the maximum benefit of the food.”

Commenting on his successful journey as a chef, Chef Pubilis reveals that his accomplishments are attributed to his intentions when preparing the dishes.

“Cooking is a meditation. All steps of cooking and preparing a dish must be done with good intentions so that the end consumer can enjoy the dish not just for its nutritional value. At Mount Lavinia we have introduced this form of cooking to all chefs and therefore one can be guaranteed of experiencing something that goes beyond scintillating your taste buds.”