What is the closest substitute for Sri Lankan red rice?

Red cargo rice is the closest swap, followed by a sturdy long-grain like sona masoori. Sri Lankan red rice (rathu kekulu) is an unpolished or lightly polished red grain with a nutty flavour and firm bite, so you want a rice that holds its shape. Brown rice also works as a stand-in, though the texture comes out a little softer.

What are the main types of rice used in Sri Lankan cooking?

The main types are red raw rice (rathu kekulu), nadu, samba, and basmati or seeraga samba for celebration dishes. Red raw rice is the everyday wholegrain choice with a nutty bite. Nadu is a lightly milled medium grain that suits daily rice and curry. Samba is a short, dense grain prized for its aroma and used in special meals. Long-grain basmati and the tiny seeraga samba are reserved for biryani and festive rice.

What is the difference between nadu and samba rice?

Nadu is a medium grain that cooks light and separate. Samba is a shorter, denser grain with a heartier, slightly chewy texture and stronger aroma. Nadu is the practical everyday rice for rice and curry because it's forgiving and quick. Samba takes a touch more water and time, but it rewards you with body and fragrance, which is why people often choose it for richer or more festive meals.

How much water do I use for Sri Lankan rice?

Start with about 1.5 cups of water per cup of white nadu or samba rice, and closer to 2 to 2.5 cups per cup of red raw rice. Red and wholegrain rice has an intact bran layer, so it absorbs more liquid and needs longer cooking. Rinse the rice first, then adjust slightly to taste once you learn how your particular rice and pot behave.

Why is my rice mushy or sticky, and how do I fix it?

If your rice turns mushy or sticky, the culprit is usually too much water, too high a heat, or stirring while it cooks. All three break the grains and release extra starch. To fix it, rinse the rice until the water runs clearer, measure your liquid carefully, and let it simmer covered and undisturbed on low heat. Once cooked, rest it off the heat for 5 to 10 minutes, then fluff gently with a fork rather than stirring.

Do I need to rinse rice before cooking it?

Yes. Rinse white rice two or three times until the water runs clearer. That removes surface starch and helps the grains cook up separate instead of gluey. Swirl the rice in cool water and drain, repeating until the cloudiness drops. Red raw rice benefits from rinsing too, and you can even soak it for 20 to 30 minutes to soften the bran and shorten cooking time.

What is yellow rice and how is it different from plain rice?

Yellow rice is rice cooked with coconut milk and warming spices, coloured golden by turmeric and often built on basmati or samba for a festive plate. It is fragrant and lightly rich, not plain at all, perfumed with whole spices like cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, pandan, and curry leaves. It is a celebration rice rather than an everyday one, served alongside curries at gatherings and special meals.

Which rice should a beginner start with?

If you are new to this, start with nadu or any everyday white rice. It is forgiving, cooks quickly, and tolerates small measuring mistakes. Get comfortable with the boil-then-simmer-covered method first, then move on to red raw rice, which needs more water and patience. Once plain rice is reliable, flavoured rice like ghee or yellow rice is an easy next step.

Is Sri Lankan red rice healthier than white rice?

Red raw rice generally offers more fibre, minerals, and a nuttier flavour than polished white rice because it keeps most of its bran layer. That intact bran also gives it a firmer bite and a gentler effect on blood sugar for many people. White nadu or samba is lighter and quicker to cook, so many home kitchens keep both and choose based on the meal.

What rice is best for a traditional rice and curry plate?

Red raw rice or nadu is the classic base for a Sri Lankan rice and curry plate because both stand up to saucy curries and sambols. Red rice brings a nutty, hearty quality that suits robust meals, while nadu keeps things light and lets the curries shine. Spoon the rice into the centre of the plate and surround it with curries, a sambol, and a mallum.

Can I reheat and store cooked rice safely?

Yes. Cool cooked rice quickly, refrigerate it within an hour or two, and use it within 3 to 4 days, reheating until piping hot all the way through. Spreading the rice out to cool fast helps keep it safe, since rice left warm for too long can harbour bacteria. Day-old chilled rice is also ideal for fried rice because the drier grains fry up separate.

Ingredients

Sri Lankan Rice: Varieties and How to Cook Them

Rice is the centre of the plate in Sri Lanka, and there's more to it than plain white. Here are the main varieties, what they suit, and a method that gets each one right.

Ingredients6 min read

Red Raw Rice (Rathu Kekulu)

The everyday wholegrain staple. It has a nutty flavour and a firm chew that stands up to bold curries. It needs more water and a little longer to cook than white rice.

If you can't find the exact variety, red cargo rice or a sturdy long-grain like sona masoori is the closest swap.

Nadu and Samba Rice

Nadu is a popular white parboiled rice and the default white rice on many tables, with separate, fluffy grains. Samba is a smaller, rounder, fragrant grain prized for special meals and kiribath (milk rice).

You'll find both at Sri Lankan and Tamil grocers. If you can't get them, basmati is a fine everyday alternative.

Yellow and Ghee Rice for Celebrations

Yellow rice (kaha bath) is plain rice cooked in coconut milk with turmeric and whole spices, a festive golden dish. Ghee rice is similar but enriched with ghee and fried onions.

These turn a simple meal into a feast and are barely more effort than plain rice. See our yellow rice recipe.

How to Get the Rice Right

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, that gets rid of the surface starch. Use roughly 1.5 cups water per cup of white rice, a touch more for red rice. Bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer on the lowest heat until the liquid is absorbed.

Rest the rice off the heat, lid on, for 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork. A rice cooker does all of this automatically, and it's well worth it if you cook rice often.

Learn more:red rice (rathu kekulu)how a rice and curry plate comes togetherred raw ricesamba ricethe rice and main meal bases collectionnadu rice, the everyday grain

Recipes to Try Next

Put this guide into practice with these authentic Sri Lankan recipes.

Kaha Bath

Sri Lankan Yellow Rice

4.7(13 reviews)

Sri Lankan yellow rice, known as kaha bath, is golden turmeric rice cooked in coconut milk with whole spices, curry leaves and pandan. This festival rice, sometimes called Sri Lankan turmeric rice or coconut milk yellow rice, is fragrant, faintly rich and far more interesting than plain rice, yet barely more effort. Serve it under a spread of curries and sambols.

35 minsServes 6BeginnerMild

Substitutes includedVegetarian

Ghee Bath

Ghee Rice

Ghee rice, or ghee bath, is long-grain rice cooked in ghee with onions, whole spices, pandan and curry leaves until each grain is glossy and perfumed. It sits next to yellow rice on celebration menus, mild, buttery and aromatic, usually topped with fried cashews and raisins. Some call it Sri Lankan ghee rice, and honestly, it makes any meal feel a little festive without much work.

35 minsServes 4BeginnerMild

Substitutes includedVegetarian

Pol Bath

Sri Lankan Coconut Rice

Sri Lankan coconut rice goes by pol bath or coconut milk rice. It's fluffy, savoury rice simmered in coconut milk with pandan, lemongrass, curry leaves and a little onion. The coconut makes it rich and gently sweet, but it stays firmly savoury. It's the soft, comforting everyday rice that turns dhal, a sambol or a simple curry into a proper meal. Don't confuse it with kiribath, the firm rice cut into diamonds, or with a sweet coconut rice pudding. This one is fluffy, aromatic and meant to be eaten warm with curry.

35 minsServes 4BeginnerMild

Substitutes includedVegetarian

Rathu Kekulu

Sri Lankan Red Rice

Sri Lankan red rice, or rathu kekulu, is the island's everyday wholegrain rice. Unpolished red-skinned grains, a nutty flavour, a satisfying chew, and far more fibre than white rice. It's the base of a proper rice and curry, and it's simple to cook on the stove or in a rice cooker once you know it wants a little more water and a little more time. Naturally vegan and high in fibre, it's a rice that actually works for you.

45 minsServes 4BeginnerMild

Substitutes includedVegetarian

Kiri Bath

Kiribath

Kiribath is Sri Lanka's milk rice, and it's a quiet one. Short-grain rice gets cooked until soft, then thick coconut milk and a little salt are folded through, the whole thing pressed flat and cut into diamonds. Plain, creamy, just gently rich. It's the food of new beginnings: New Year morning, birthdays, the first of every month, nearly always with a spoonful of fiery lunu miris. You'll also see it written kiri bath. It's one of the simplest, most meaningful dishes in the Sri Lankan kitchen.

35 minsServes 6BeginnerMild

Substitutes includedVegetarian

Lamprais

4.9(7 reviews)

Lamprais, also written lump rice or lomprijst, is the dish that sums up Sri Lankan Dutch Burgher cooking: rice cooked in meat stock, a special mixed-meat curry, a fried ash-plantain curry, seeni sambol, a frikkadel meatball and a pungent blachan, all wrapped in a banana leaf and baked together. It takes a day or two to make properly, but the moment you open a warm parcel and that layered, smoky aroma rises up, you get why it is such a beloved festive dish.

150 minsServes 6AdvancedMedium

Substitutes includedMeat

Frequently Asked Questions

No, you don't need a rice cooker, though it does make consistent rice really easy and it's especially handy for flavoured rice. On the stovetop you can get equally good results by measuring your water, bringing it to a boil, then covering and lowering the heat to a gentle simmer. For yellow or ghee rice in a cooker, simply add the toasted spices and the same liquid you would use on the stove.

Free: 5 Sri Lankan Recipes for Beginners

Dhal curry, pol sambol, yellow rice and the pantry checklist.

Download Free Guide