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Lavariya (ලැවරියා, string-hopper parcels with coconut treacle filling)
Steamed rice-flour noodle parcels around coconut cooked in kithul treacle
Lavariya turns up on the Sinhala and Tamil New Year table in mid-April, when households across Sri Lanka lay out a spread of sweets after the auspicious hour. It starts as string-hopper dough: roasted rice flour scalded with boiling water and pressed through a mould into fine noodles. Here the noodles are piped in a coil, filled with pani pol, grated coconut cooked down in kithul treacle with cardamom, then folded into a half-moon and steamed. The result is soft, lacy and springy outside, with a sticky, smoky-sweet centre. Serve warm with plain tea or as part of an Avurudu platter with kokis and kavum. It is naturally egg-free: the boiling water cooks and swells the rice starch so the dough holds its shape, and the thick treacle binds the coconut. Chef's tip: the common mistake is using warm rather than boiling water; the dough then crumbles in the press, so pour it straight off the boil and mix with a spoon until cool enough to knead.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the pani pol filling
- 7 oz freshly grated coconutor frozen grated coconut, thawed
- ½ cup kithul treacleor 120 g grated palm jaggery melted with 2 tbsp water
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 pinch salt
For the dough
- 10 ½ oz roasted white or red rice flourstring-hopper flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ¾ cups boiling wateryou may not need it all
For steaming
- 12 banana leaf squaresabout 15 cm, wiped, or parchment squares
- 1 tbsp coconut oilfor the leaves
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Put 7 oz freshly grated coconut, ½ cup kithul treacle, ½ tsp ground cardamom and 1 pinch salt in a heavy pan over a medium-low heat. Stir for 10–12 minutes until the treacle is absorbed, the mixture turns glossy brown and clumps when pressed with a spoon.
12 minStep 2: Spread the filling on a plate and leave to cool completely, about 15 minutes. Warm filling softens the noodles and makes them tear.
15 minStep 3: Mix 10 ½ oz roasted white or red rice flour and ½ tsp salt in a bowl. Pour in 1 ¾ cups boiling water a little at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon, until a soft dough forms that is no longer floury but not sticky.
Step 4: When it is cool enough to handle, knead for 2 minutes until smooth. Keep it covered with a damp cloth so it does not dry out.
2 minStep 5: Brush each of the 12 banana leaf squares lightly with 1 tbsp coconut oil. Fill a string-hopper press with dough and press a flat coil of noodles about 10 cm across onto one leaf.
Step 6: Spoon about 1 heaped tbsp of filling in a line across the middle of the coil. Fold the leaf over so the noodles close into a half-moon and press the edges gently together.
Step 7: Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling. You should get about 12 parcels.
Step 8: Bring water to a steady boil under a steamer. Steam the parcels in a single layer, still on their leaves, for 8–10 minutes until the noodles turn from opaque white to slightly translucent and feel springy.
10 minStep 9: Rest for 5 minutes, then peel off the leaves. Serve warm or at room temperature the same day.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 310 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 58 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does lavariya (ලැවරියා, string-hopper parcels with coconut treacle filling) take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 50 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
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