Odiyal Kool (Seafood Broth)

Kool is the east coast in a bowl — a fisherman’s everything-soup traditionally cooked over a wood fire and eaten standing up at family gatherings in Batticaloa. Palmyra root flour gives it a distinctive earthy taste and glossy, almost stretchy body.

Method

1. Bring 2 litres of water to the boil with turmeric, chilli powder, curry leaves and salt.
2. Add the crab first and simmer for 10 minutes, then the fish, prawns and cuttlefish.
3. Add the soaked rice, jak seeds and long beans, and simmer until the rice is cooked.
4. Stir in the tamarind and the greens.
5. Slake the odiyal flour with a cup of cold water, then stream it in while stirring. Simmer until the broth thickens to a loose porridge consistency.
6. Check the seasoning — kool should be hot, sour and deeply savoury. Serve in bowls with nothing else; it’s a complete meal.