Sri Lankan breakfast with Tsonga, Djokovic and friends.

Zola: The comment was made today, "Dude, everyone's got a food blog." To which, I can only say: Yep. It's true. I'm not winning any prizes for originality. But I would like to also add that I was just trying to save my sanity. At the time that I dreamed this thing up, I was driving 3 hours a day on the I-5 corridor. I'll spare you monotonous details. I'm sure you can image the fun. But then I thought about food and food stories and the how I have been able to connect with people through food and that made me happy. It is a simple and easy connection and at the same time, the thought of doing this - being challenged to learn whatever food people threw at me - seemed like an interesting divergence. So I went with it. Now can you imagine my delight when I opened my email inbox and there was a message from someone I'd never met with a recipe for a Sri Lankan breakfast and these words: If you are interested we would love to cook Sri Lankan food for you and you would be most welcome.??? I think I responded with something like, "don't say it if you don't mean it - because I'll be there." Zay & Agit did mean it. When they opened the door to us, Ajit immediately plied us with Arrack Coctails - which I highly recommend. The AC is made with arrack, lime, passion fruit and shaken with ice.They told us about their lives between Portland and Sri Lanka, and made an amazing feast for us. I've never felt so lucky.

Guy: So here's the fantastic recipe for Sri Lankan breakfast provided by our charming and gracious new friends Agit and Zay. This is not an every day breakfast but a meal for special occasions, typically weddings or birthdays. As we did not have one of these events looming we decided to have it coincide with one of my favorite past times - tennis! The final of the Australian Open tennis is played on Australia day the 26th of January, we invited our friends Emily, Mark and Bill over to watch the match between Jo-Wilfred Tsonga of France and Novak Djokavic of Serbia. The chicken curry and coconut rice dish was a great hit, with lashings of India sweets on the side, the tennis feast was both a colorful and delicious meal.

Zay:
I am sending you the recepies for Sri Lankan Breakfast.This menu is made for all auspicious occasions like the 1st of the year, weddings,entering a new home,starting a new buisness etc.
It is Kiri Bath Kiri = Milk(coconut) Bath= Rice.
It is eaten with Lunu Miris Lunu= Onions Miris Chilli This is a fiery relish.
Chicken/Fish Curry
Jaggery =Palm Sugar This is similar to Molasses that is hard

Kiri Bath
1 lb Rice ( basmathi)
3 tsps Salt
3-4 Cardammoms crushed
Milk of 1 large coconut or 1 1/2 cans coconut milk/cream
Wash rice .Add cardommoms,salt and water(approx 1 1/2 ins above level of rice) and allow to cook.
When rice is well cooked and slightly mushy add coconut milk and cook stirring occassionally till mixture is a thick smooth mass.
There should be no liquid left.Remove cardommoms.
Spread this on a dish/baking tray and smooth top with foil. It should be at least 1 1/2 ins high.
Cut into diamond shapes once set.
Traditionally this is left to set on a plantain leaf and the top pressed into shape by one too.It adds to the flavour

Lunu Miris
2 oz dry red chilli pcs/flakes
1/2 oz Maldive fish (dry ground fish)
Lime juice
salt
2 oz onions
Grind all ingredients to a coarse paste.Add salt and lime to taste.

Chicken Curry
2 1/2 lb chicken
2 tbsp corriander powder
2 tsps cummin powder
3 tsps sweet cummin powder
2 oz red onion
2 slices ginger
8 pods garlic
4 -5cardommoms
1/2 in cinnamom
4 cloves
1/2 tsp fengureek
1-2 green chillis(jalapeno)
1 in Rampe (pandun leaf)
4 curry leaves
3/4 in lemon grass
1 large tomato chopped
1tbsp rice + 1 tbsp grated coconut roasted fairly dark (high heat in a non stick pan)
salt
2-3 tbsp oil
12 ozs coconut milk
Cut the chicken into 8 portions.Prick with fork all over.
Grind garlic,ginger,green chilli,roasted rice and coconut,cloves,seeds of cardamoms,cinnamon into a fine paste.(use a food processor, much easier than a mortar and pistal.
Add all the ground and powdered ings along with salt into chicken and leave for 1/2 hour.
Chop onions
Heat oil in a pan till very hot .Add onions,rampe,curry leaves,lemon grass and fry till light brown.
Add chicken and toss for 5-7 mins.Add coconut milk and bring to boil over medium heat.
cook till done.if you like more gravy or curry too thick add a little water or coconut milk that is diluted.

Guy: So Djokovic was the winner of the championship. Unfortunately the coverage skipped the Trophy ceremony, to which Bill stated "That's OK because I didn't want to tear up in front of you all anyway". Tsonga was the valiant loser in a great tennis match, however we were the winners in the breakfast match, Allez!