Sri Lankan Avurudu Recipes

These avurudu recipes are very unique to Sri Lanka and take a major part in Avurudu table in every Sri Lankan household.

1. Wali Thalapa / Sau Dodol Recipe

Wali Thalapa is a delicious Sri Lankan avurudu sweet loved by many. Wali Thalapa is also called as Sau Dodol. Try this easy Wali Thalapa recipe for this avurudu.

Ingredients:

• White raw rice flour – 500g
• Sugar – 450g
• Desiccated coconut – 180g
• Thick coconut milk – 01 cup
• Ground cardamom
• Salt – 02 tsp

Method:

• Mix desiccated coconut and flour until the flour forms into tiny balls like beads.
• If this mixture is dry, sprinkle some water so that it helps to form balls.
• Then transfer this into a steamer.
• Now steam this around 35 – 45 mins.
• While the pittu is still warm we need to again separate flour beads and keep this aside.
• The next step is to make the sugar syrup. Put small amount of sugar to a pan and heat until it becomes dark brown.
• When sugar is bubbling add hot water.
• Then add remaining sugar and 01 cup of more hot water.
• When sugar dissolves completely add salt and coconut milk.
• Heat coconut milk well under medium heat. Meanwhile we can add ground cardamom to this.
• When sugar syrup is ready add flour beads.
• Mix this thoroughly until flour absorbs all sugar syrup.
• When the mixture becomes sticky switch off the flame.
• Transfer this mixture into a tray and make it flatten.
• Then let this cool down a bit and cut into pieces.

2. Athirasa Recipe

Athirasa is a very delicious Awurudu sweets in Sri Lanka. Almost all household prepared Athirasa for Sinhala and Tamil new year. Preparing Athirasa is not a difficult thing if you follow correct steps.

Ingredients:

• Rice Flour - 500g
• Sugar - 300g
• Fennel Seeds - 25g
• Salt - 02 tsp
• Kappi (Cracked Rice)
• All purpose flour
• Coconut honey (Optional)
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

• First of all it needs to prepare Kappi. For that put cracked rice into a frying pan and fry until it becomes light brown.
• Fry fennel seeds around 01 min and grind it well.
• Then, put small amount of sugar in to a pan and let it melt under medium heat while stirring continuously.
• When sugar is melted well and becomes dark brown add one cup of hot water.
• Then add remaining sugar and stir well to combine.
• Add salt and mix well.
• Cook this sugar syrup under medium heat until it becomes to the right level. Get a small amount from this sugar syrup to a spoon and pour it down. If it is pouring down like a thick line the sugar mixture has come to the right level.
• Get a half cup of sugar syrup to a cup and keep it aside. This can be used when adding flour.
• Add coconut honey and mix well. Switch off the flame after around 01 min.
• Add fennel seeds, cracked rice and mix well.
• Add rice flour little by little and mix. Here, don’t add all rice flour at once. If you do so, it will be difficult to mix this properly.
• Add all purpose flour and mix.
• After adding all flour touch this mixture from your fingers. If this mixture doesn’t stick to your fingers the mixture has come to the right level.
• Apply some oil in a board or a try and transfer the flour mixture into this board.
• Then put small amount of this mixture to your pan and put water. Mix this with leftovers and cook until it becomes like a thick paste.
• Put this thick liquid into your flour mixture and mix thoroughly until this becomes smooth and nice.
• Wet your hands with little bit of coconut oil and then start making kawum.
• First, prepare small balls and keep them aside.
• Then, press these balls and make shapes like biscuits.
• Heat oil and put prepared kawum one by one.
• After putting one kawum, wait until it comes up to put the next one. If not your kawum will stick each other.
• Once kawum becomes golden brown get it out from oil and keep on a net or a tissue paper.
• Do the same for the rest of your mixture.
• When you store your prepared kawum place a dish or a small cup at the bottom of you container and store kawum around that. We do this because Athirasa has more oil than other kawum. If you just store them the kawum which are in the bottom of the container will absorb more oil.

3. Aluwa Recipe

Aluwa is another delicious Avurudhu sweet that gets more attention in New Year table. Aluwa is a traditional Sri Lankan sweet that made with rice flour. Follow these steps correctly and decorate your Avurudhu table with this tasty sweet.

Ingredients:

• Rice Flour - 500g
• Sugar - 300g
• Milk
• Cashew
• Cardamom
• Water - 01 cup

Method:

• For Aluwa it is better to make rice flour at home. We showed how to make rice flour at home when making Kokis.
• Roast the rice flour under medium heat until it becomes like tiny sand.
• Sift flour.
• Grind cardamom and chop cashew into small pieces.
• Boil the sugar and water. Add salt and mix.
• Let this sugar melt under medium heat. It takes around 10-12mins for this to come to a proper level.
• Get small amount from this syrup to a spoon and pour it down. If it is pouring down like a thick line this sugar syrup is ready.
• Switch off the flame and get half a cup of this syrup and keep it aside. This can be used later when adding flour.
• Add cardamom and cashew to the remaining syrup and mix.
• Add milk and mix.
• Add rice flour little by little to the syrup and mix well. Here don’t add all rice flour at once and reserve some flour for the coating.
• After adding flour if this is too much harden, add more syrup and mix. The reserved syrup can be used for this.
• When this becomes a soft dough, spread this on a prepared board/tray.
• Level the dough by spreading rice flour on it.
• Then cut this into desired shapes.
• When storing this, apply little bit of rice flour on the bottom side of Aluwa. Then it won’t stick to each other.
• Let this cool down and serve.
• Keep in mind to follow above steps quickly since this dough gets harden very quickly.

4. Mung Kawum Recipe

Mung Kawum or Green Gram Kawum is very famous in Awurudhu season. It’s really easy to cook Mung Kwum if you follow correct steps.

Ingredients:

• Roasted green gram flour - 250g
• Rice flour - 250g (For the batter)
• Rice flour - 200g (To mix with green gram flour)
• Rice flour - 200g (For dusting)
• All purpose flour - 100g
• Sugar - 250g
• Coconut honey - 1/2 cups
• Eggs - 01
• Salt - 02 tsp
• Coconut milk - 02 cups
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

• Roast rice flour that we need for the batter around 03mins.
• Roast rice flour that we mix with green gram flour around 02 mins.
• To make sugar syrup, put a small amount of sugar to your frying pan and let it melt under low heat while stirring continuously.
• When sugar becomes dark brown add one cup of hot water.
• Then add remaining sugar, 01 tsp of salt and another cup of water.
• Cook this under low heat while stirring.
• To check whether your sugar syrup is ready, get a small amount of sugar syrup to your spoon and pour it down. If it pours down like a thick line this has come to the right level.
• Now get around 1/2 cup from this and keep this aside. This can be used while adding flour.
• Thereafter, add coconut honey to the remaining sugar syrup and cook around 01-02 mins.
• Add roasted green gram flour and mix.
• Add rice flour and mix.
• Add all purpose flour and mix.
• Once this is mixed well, touch this dough with your fingers. If it doesn’t stick to your fingers this dough has come to the right level.
• Then, get your board or tray and dust it with rice flour.
• Transfer the kawum mixture into this board.
• Level and make this thin while dusting with roasted rice flour.
• Now cut this into diamond shapes.
• To make the batter, beat an egg little and dd coconut milk and 01 tsp of salt and mix.
• Add rice flour little by little and mix. If you like you can add little bit of all purpose flour also.
• Mix this until this becomes a thick batter.
• Here some people and turmeric powder into this batter to get more yellow colour to kawum. If you like you can add 01 tsp of turmeric powder into this.
• Once oil is heated well, dip kawum in the batter and put into oil.
• When kawum becomes golden brown get them out of oil and keep on a tissue or a net.
• Once you are done with making all kawum, let them cool down and then store in an air tight container.

5. Naran Kawum Recipe

In many areas in Sri Lanka Naran Kawum or Pol Kawum is very famous in awurudu season. Making these beautiful kawum balls are enjoyable. Give it a try and see how taste it is.

Ingredients:For the Mixture

• Sugar - 350g
• Rice Flour - 500g
• Salt - 02 tsp
• Scraped Coconut - 01

Ingredients:For the Batter

• Egg - 01
• Salt - 01 tsp
• Rice Flour - 250g
• Coconut milk - 02 cups
• All purpose flour - 50g

Method:

• Mix scraped coconut and rice flour together until it becomes tiny balls.
• Add some water and mix if you feel this is bit dry.
• After mixing, steam this mixture about 45 mins. When we do so, these kawum can be kept around 02-03 days more than just making with pani pol.
• After steaming crush this again in to tiny balls.
• To make the sugar caramel, put a small amount of sugar to your frying pan and let it melt under low heat.
• When sugar is bubbling, put one cup of hot water in to this.
• Mix this well and cook around 05 mins.
• Then, add flour coconut mixture little by little and mix.
• This needs to be cooked around 10-15 mins until it becomes a smooth sticky coconut paste.
• Once this is ready, transfer this to a board and let it cool down where you can touch it properly.
• Then make small kawum balls from this mixture.
• After making all kawum balls the batter needs to be made.
• For this, mix egg, coconut milk and salt together.
• Then add rice flour and mix.
• Now add all purpose flour and mix.
• Mix this with flour until this becomes a smooth thick batter.
• In this stage some people add turmeric powder to the batter to get more yellow colour to kawum. If you like you also can add 01 tsp of turmeric powder.
• Once the oil is heated well, dip kawum balls in the batter and put them into oil.
• Once kawum becomes golden brown get it out of oil and keep on a net or a tissue.
• Do the same for the rest of your mixture.

6. Leftover Rice Aggala Recipe

Aggala is a very tasty Sri Lankan food. Aggala can be cooked in many ways. Making Aggala with left over rice is one way of doing it.

Ingredients:

• Rice Flour - 250g
• Scraped coconut - 1/2 cup
• Coconut honey - 1/2 cup
• Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method:

• Mix salt with coconut honey.
• Keep aside a small amount of rice flour for dusting and mix pepper with remaining flour.
• Put coconut into a pan and let it dry around 02 mins while stirring continuously. By doing this, it evaporates the water in coconut and help to keep Aggala 02-03 days more.
• Add coconut honey into the pan and mix with coconut.
• When pani pol is bubbling switch off the flame and start adding flour.
• Add flour little by little and mix well with pani pol.
• Once this is mixed well start making Aggala and use the flour that we kept aside for dusting.

7. Milk Rice Recipe

We all Sri Lankans love to eat Milk Rice. Milk Rice is mostly prepared for breakfast. Milk Rice gets a very prominent place in any auspicious moment in Sri Lanka.

Ingredients:

• White Raw Rice – 400g
• Thick coconut milk – 02 ½ , 03 cups
• Salt – 02 tsp
• Water – 03/04 cups

Method:

• Wash rice well and put them into your cooking pot.
• Add water to the level that all rice is covered and cook this like we cook normal rice.
• Meanwhile, mix salt with coconut milk.
• Once rice is cooked well add coconut milk into this.
• Mix coconut milk with rice and cook this on medium heat.
• Stir this constantly until we get this out from fire.
• When rice absorbed all coconut milk and starts sticking together switch off the flame.
• Transfer this into a wooden board or a tray and level the surface.
• Then, cut this into pieces.

8. Potato Milk Toffee Recipe

Potato Toffee or Potato Fudge is an amazing recipe loved by many Sri Lankans. You may not like potatoes. But, you can never say No to this mouthwatering Potato Milk Toffee.

Ingredients:

• Sugar – 450g
• Boiled Potatoes – 300g
• Vanilla – 01 tsp
• Condensed Milk – 400g
• Ground Cardamom
• Butter – 1 ½ tbsp

Method:

• Mash potatoes finely till no lumps exit.
• Combine mashed potatoes and sugar in a pan. Keep stirring until sugar is well combined with potatoes.
• Then, add condensed milk and mix well to combine.
• Add cardamom and vanilla.
• Stir continuously under low heat.
• When the mixture starts thicken add butter.
• Make sure to keep stirring.
• When the mixture becomes thicker and when it doesn’t stick on your pan switch off the flame.
• Flatten the mixture on a wooden board or a tray and let it cool down around 01-02 mins.Don’t let this cool down too much, otherwise the mixture will be hardened for you to cut slices.
• After that cut into desired pieces.
• Let this cool down completely and store in an air tight container.

9. Coconut Cake / Bibikkan Recipe

Bibikkan or Coconut Cake is truly a Sri Lankan Avurudu celebration cake. This rich and dark cake is bit similar to a Christmas cake, but, the taste is very different and unique.

Ingredients:

• Scraped Coconut – 250g
• Kithul Treacle – 340ml
• All-purpose Flour – 150g
• Eggs – 03
• Ground cardamom, cinnamon & cloves mixture – 01 tsp
• Baking Powder – 01 tsp
• Chopped Dates – 100g
• Chopped Cashew – 100g
• Plums – 50g
• Vanilla – 01 tsp
• Salt – 01 tsp

Method:

• Heat treacle in a pan. Here don’t use all treacle. Keep small amount aside so that we can use them after baking the cake.
• Instead of Kithul Treacle you can use Coconut Treacle, Sugar and Jaggery as well.
• Add ground cloves, cardamom & cinnamon mixture and salt.
• Add coconut and let it simmer for few minutes.
• Switch off the flame when the moisture is there. Let it cool down to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, beat eggs well.
• Mix flour with baking powder. If there are any lumps in your flour sieve it well before adding it to Pani Pol.
• Add beaten eggs to Pani Pol & mix. Don’t add eggs when Pani Pol mixture is hot. If so, it will boil the egg.
• Add flour and mix thoroughly to combine. After adding flour, it will reduce the color of our cake. If you want it to be too dark, make your Pani Pol mixture too darker.
• Add cashew, dates, plums & vanilla.
• Mix heavily to combine all ingredients together.
• Transfer the mixture into a baking pan and bake the cake around 45mins under 180° Celcius.
• After baking get the cake out of the oven and apply treacle on the cake. This needs to be done when the cake is hot. Then it absorbs treacle well giving more taste and moisture to the cake.
• Let the cake cool down and serve.

10. Green Gram Milk Rice

Green gram milk rice, also known as Mung Ata Kiribath is another delicious traditional Avurudu recipe. Normal milk rice plus one more step. Then, it’s Green Gram Milk Rice.

Ingredients:

• White Raw Rice – 400g
• Green Gram – 125g
• Thick Coconut Milk – 02 ½ / 03 cups
• Salt – 02 tsps
• Water – 04 cups

Method:

• Soak green gram in the previous day night. (At least 12 hours)
• Wash green gram thoroughly before making Milk Rice.
• Wash raw rice also very well and put both rice and green gram to your cooking pot.
• Add water to the level that all rice is covered and cook this like we cook normal rice.
• Until the rice is cooked, mix salt with coconut milk. When we do so, it spreads salt every part of milk rice evenly.
• When rice is cooked enough add coconut milk. Make sure to stir this continuously until this is taken out of fire.
• Once rice absorbed all coconut milk and starts sticking together switch off the flame. Here we need to check whether green gram is cooked enough too.
• Transfer milk rice on to a flat surface and make it flat.
• Let this cool down a bit and cut into pieces.

11. Cashew & Jaggery Milk Rice

Instead of cooking a normal milk rice some likes to cook a milk rice mixed with jaggery for Avurudu. This jaggery milk rice mixed with cashew will be a great addition for your avurudu table.

Ingredients:

• White raw rice – 400g
• Water – 04 cups
• Plums – 30g
• Grated jaggery – 150g
• Thick coconut milk – 02 ½ - 03 cups
• Cashew – 100g
• Salt – 02 tsps

Method:

• Put rice into a pan and add water to the level all rice is covered. Cook this like we normally cook rice.
• Meanwhile, mix salt with coconut milk.
• When rice is cooked enough add coconut milk. After adding coconut milk stir continuously under low heat.
• Then add cashew, jaggery & plums. Mix thoroughly to combine all ingredients together.
• When rice absorbed all coconut milk and starts sticking together switch off the flame.
• Transfer milk rice into a tray, flatten it well, let it cool down a bit and then cut into pieces.

12. Semolina Aluwa from Condensed Milk

Semolina Aluwa is another New Year sweet loved by many Lankans. Normally Semolina Aluwa is made by using coconut. But, this Semolina Aluwa made with condensed milk will be a new taste for you.

Ingredients:

• Semolina – 500g
• Condensed Milk – 390g
• Cashew – 50g
• Water – 1/3 from condensed milk tin
• Vanilla – 01 tsp
• Butter – 30g
• Sugar – 75g
• Ground Cardamom

Method:

• Get a flat tray and dust it with semolina.
• Then roast semolina until you get the smell and let it cool down. Don’t roast it too much.
• Mix milk, sugar and water under medium heat. Add around 1/3 of water from your condensed milk tin.
• Stir this continuously under low heat until milk gets bit thicker.
• Add cashew, ground cardamom and vanilla.
• Mix all these things together and then add butter.
• Once butter mixed well with milk add semolina.
• Mix this thoroughly around 02-03mins and then switch off the flame.
• Then, transfer this mixture into the prepared tray and make it flat.
• After that, let this cool down and cut into desired pieces.

13. Tasty Vibara Recipe

The name “Vibara” may not be very familiar to you. Some of you may not even heard this food. Try this easy and delicious recipe at home. This will be a great new experience for you.

Ingredients:

• White raw rice flour – 500g
• Thick coconut milk – 02 cups
• Salt – 02 tsps
• Eggs – 01
• Sugar
• Food coloring

Method:

• Sieve flour very well around 02-03 times.
• Roast flour a bit under medium heat.
• Mix coconut milk with salt and egg.
• Add coconut milk little by little to flour and mix. It needs to do this while heat is still there in flour.
• Knead the dough well until it becomes a soft ball.
• From this dough make flower patterns by using a vibara mould.
• After little time this vibara dough will be dried up. If so, add some more coconut milk and mix again.
• After making flowers it needs to fry them. It doesn’t need to fry them too long. Fry until they become light brown.
• After frying all vibara store them in an air tight container and keep around 05-06 days.
• After that it needs to fry them again. After frying them for the second time these flower patterns will look nice.
• Then it needs to make the sugar syrup. For that, put water and sugar into a pan and stir under medium heat.
• When sugar dissolves add few drops of food coloring.
• Stir this continuously until sugar syrup comes to the correct level.
• When sugar syrup is ready switch off the flame. You can check whether this sugar syrup has come to the correct level by taking small amount to a spoon and pouring it down. If it comes down like a thin line this has come to the correct level.
• Now pour sugar syrup over vibara.
• We can keep this around 02 weeks when stored in an air tight container.

14. Imbul Kiribath Recipe

Imbul Kiribath, the sweet variation of milk rice is a very old authentic Sri Lankan food. Milk Rice stuffed with coconut mixed with treacle is an absolute delicacy for a sweet tooth.

Ingredients:Pani Pol (Coconut mixed with treacle)

• Scraped Coconut – 200g
• Sugar – 150g
• Treacle
• Ground Cardamom
• Pinch of Salt
• Hot Water – ½ cup

Ingredients:Milk Rice

• White Raw Rice – 500g
• Thick Coconut Milk – 03 cups
• Salt – 02 tsp
• Water – 03 / 04 cups

Method:

• To make pani pol, put some sugar into a pan and let it melt. Heat sugar until it gets golden brown. Make sure not to overheat it. If so, pani pol will get a bitter taste.
• When sugar gets golden brown add hot water into this.
• Ten add ground cardamom and salt. After that add rest of the sugar and treacle.
• When sugar starts bubbling, add scraped coconut and mix thoroughly. Cook few minutes until excess water evaporates. But, don’t let it over dry.
• To make milk rice, wash rice very well and put it into your cooking pot. Add water to the level until all rice is covered and cook like we cook normal rice.
• Meanwhile, mix salt with coconut milk.
• When rice is cooked, add coconut milk into this. Cook milk rice under medium heat while stirring constantly.
• When rice absorbs all coconut milk and starts sticking together switch off the flame.
• Put some milk rice into an oil paper or Kolapatha (areca sheath) and spread it evenly like a square. Keep some pani pol in the middle of milk rice. Keep both ends together, roll it and then turn both ends to the opposite directions like we wrap a toffee to get a cylinder shape.
• Open it and keep milk rice on a plate. Repeat this until all milk rice and pani pol is over.
• Enjoy.