COLUMBO, SRI LANKA (Part 2)

COOKING BY COLOR

We are so glad we selected this excursion, a break from the bus tours that took up so much of our trip. We turned off Columbo's busy, crowded streets into a quiet residential neighborhood. We walked a few steps from the bus, and Mohara Dole, dressed in a beautiful white sari (is she going to cook in that?), greeted us at the gate of her home like the grandmother she is welcoming family! We were running behind schedule due to delays getting out of the Port, so we only had a short time in her small but lush yard. A beautiful, quiet oasis totally removed from the hectic world outside. Lovely flowers, including bougainvillea, are familiar to us. She pointed out several plants she uses in her cooking – curry leaves, peppercorn, lotus root, and lemon root; then we moved through her home to the cooking and demonstration area. Her house was lovely, cool, and inviting, with polished tile floors, oriental rugs, and woven furniture. We passed through her office (with a display of 12 security camera videos). The cooking and demonstration was a large area, well designed for its purpose. There were four tables of four, nicely set for the lunch we would prepare and eat later. There were 3 “workstations” with all manner of beautifully presented ingredients, chopping boards, and knives so everyone could contribute to the meal. There was a large sink for everyone to wash their hands before we started. After refreshments of watermelon or papaya juice, we were each given a black apron to wear. And we were ready to cook and learn.

Mohara is a tiny, 82-year-old grandmother; to say she’s five feet tall would be a stretch (no pun intended). A single mother said she started making pizza to support her family – nothing says Sri Lanka cooking like pizza! A savvy businesswoman, her LinkedIn profile shows she did more than make pizza. Our Excursion brochure said she’s been a leader in the Sri Lanka food industry for 30 years! For 19+ years, she was managing director of her own business, The Food Factory, making pizza in 5 flavors: Arabic Bread, whole wheat bread, pita bread, and several other breads not familiar but which all sounded delicious. Her products were sold in leading supermarkets in Sri Lanka. In 2008, she started Cooking by Color, doing cooking demonstrations and catering from her home. She said she may be giving up the demonstration part of her business – it’s a lot of work! To see this powerhouse cooking simultaneously over five propane cooking stations in the Sri Lanka heat, you can see why she may be considering retirement.

Each workstation held the ingredients for a different dish, although some were the same at all stations. We helped with the preparation of Spicy Chicken Curry, Shrimp Curry, and Lintel Curry, but she prepared a number of other dishes, as you can see from the menu. She instructed each table on how to prepare their ingredients and ensured it was an interactive experience, having tour members add ingredients and help with the cooking. We stirred the pots with long handle ladles made from half a coconut shell. The pots were glazed terra cotta, similar to one we might see at a garden center. She said she’s had the pots for years and had just bought some new ones. But like with so many things, the “new” wasn’t as good as the “old,” when a piece exploded off one of the new pots when it was heated, she returned to the old faithful. The old thing that wasn’t completed in the pottery was the shrimp curry, which was done in a metal wok because it required higher heat, and the rice, which was completed in a large rice cooker.

She cooked and talked and ensured everyone participated for over an hour. Fortunately, one of her helpers gave her an apron to protect that beautiful white sari I was worried about. It was hot, and we got tired from watching her in action. She had 6-8 barefooted helpers who passed glasses of cold water (she told us to stay hydrated), took some dishes away to be finished up in the kitchen, cleaned the workstations when the prep as done, and set up the meal buffet style for our delicious lunch when Mohara was done cooking so many (too many) delicious things. We had loofa (the same thing you use in the bath, but this was from young and tender plants – who knew), lotus root (looked like the wagon wheel pasta we served our kids), and curd (like yogurt made from buffalo milk) and Treacle (like honey made from the sap from the bud flower of a type of palm tree). Most of the curries were made with coconut milk, some thick & some thin, but all made from dried coconut milk, which others on the tour told me you can find at most foreign markets. But surprisingly, none of the foods tasted “coconutty,” just delicious.

What a great experience! She was a dynamo, so charming, and made everyone feel like a special friend. The presentation was professionally done and beautifully presented. She has great reviews on Tripadvisor, and we can see why! It was a super day.