Whether one eats at a roadside stall or inside the home, rice and breads form the base of all Sri Lankan cuisine.

The rice served is typically a medium- to short-grained, non-aromatic variety, and comes in three guises.

The type of rice served most frequently is red rice, so called because it is unpolished or unrefined. Its extra nutritional value lies in the fact that it contains more fibre than polished rice, akin to eating rye instead of white bread. It is served steamed at most meals.

Milk rice, kiribath, is served at any Sri Lankan festival, religious or otherwise, and on special occasions such as birthdays.

Saffron rice is Sri Lanka’s night-time festival dish. Being such an expensive spice, saffron is, in fact, not commonly cooked with rice, other than among the wealthy. Instead, to produce the desired colour, turmeric is generally used instead.

And with every curry and rice meal an accompanying bread is also prepared. Roti is served plain on the table and dipped into a dhal or curry, or made into a small parcel filled with a spicy curry as a delicious snack.

Hoppers – small, bowl-shaped pancakes made from rice flour and coconut milk – are one of the most distinctive elements of a Sri Lankan meal. With an egg cooked in the middle, hoppers can be eaten alone or mixed with curries and other dishes. Stringhoppers, little circles of tangled noodles made from rice flour and water, are also popular, dipped in curries and sambols and enjoyed for breakfast, lunch or dinner.