Leafy green recipes from Sri Lanka are a fail-safe way to add largest ever portions of greens in a single meal. There are number of Sri Lankan curries or salads and mallums incorporate bowls upon bowls of green leafy vegetables cooked into the recipe itself. Such leafy green recipes not only pack heaps of nutrients but are quite delicious.
Green vegetables and plant-based food are ever more popular with evidence pointing to their anti-cancerous, anti-inflammatory effects as well as ties to longevity studies. Considering the growing number of studies and mounting evidence of greens with good gastronomy, finding good and delicious leafy green recipes is more important than ever.
Most popular leafy green recipes in Sri Lanka are the ones made with shredded coconut into Mallum. There are several leafy green recipes that also use softer greens as stir fry’s, braised in sauces, or made in to curries with lentils. They all use Sri Lankan curry powder mixes to flavor them and make delicious side dishes.
My personal favorite leafy greens recipes are curries cooked with lentils and green vegetables like spinach, chard, watercress, or fenugreek leaves. The Sri Lankan green porridge or the kola kanda is another favorite among breakfast leafy green recipes, which gives a filling and nutritious way to break the fast.
Here are the top ten of my all-time favorite Leafy green recipes.
Leafy green recipes cooked in a curry
Leafy greens in the breakfast porridge
Green breakfast porridge is made with Kale and Collard greens pureed with coconut, and extracting juice out, to cook in a rice porridge. It is an ideal meal for breakfast along with some yogurt or a piece of jaggery.
This leafy rice porridge is creamy and earthy at the same time and has all the leafy green goodness in it. It is an extremely popular breakfast dish in Sri Lanka. We make it with variety of greens like Sri Lankan pennyworts (Gotu Kola), hummingbird tree leaves ( Kathurumunga), Wel Penela leaves (Cardiospermum halicacabum), Curry leaves. Any number of garden edible greens what you can find that are not overly bitter, can go in this recipe. This dish is well known for its medicinal and healing qualities too.
Braised Dandelion greens
Cooking leafy greens in a spicy sauce is a wonderful way to cook greens that are hardy and have stronger flavors. Collard greens, Dandelions, Swiss chard, or any other edible wild greens. What’s better is you could throw in some mushrooms and beans too with this recipe. It is perfect to pair with rye sourdough bread, with hardy wild rice, cracked wheat rice to make up a nourishing meal.
Wholesome green curry with spinach
Whole lentils, spinach together with aromatic spices make this dish wonderfully aromatic, nourishing, and delicious. Make the sauce with steamed and pureed spinach, instead of just coconut cream for added benefit. Iron and mineral rich curry sauce with the whole lentils is an extra dose of goodness. I make it so often because my daughters love it.
Leafy greens in a red lentil curry
Do you prefer something lighter and creamier than deeper and spicy whole lentil curry? Adding a couple of handfuls of chopped greens to red lentil curry is the perfect way to do this. It is also among the best mild and creamy leafy green recipes in my blog. I love to pair soft watery greens like spinach, watercress, rainbow chard or leeks with red lentil curry for the best tasting curry experience.
Leafy greens recipes in spicy Stir fry
Spicy leeks in deviled fish
Never discard green leaves of Leeks with this recipe. Green leaves may be little harder for any other recipe you have in mind but in this leafy green recipe they give out their soft onion flavor mixed with curry blend to coat the cooked fish flakes. Leek greens hold well to the cooking time and retain their crunch to this foodie’s joy.
Anchovies and kale are culinary match made in heaven
Looking for leafy green recipes with a flavor, crunch and perfect to munch on as a wrap or a sandwich. Look no further than this stir-fried salad anchovy and kale recipe with shredded coconuts doused in delicious yellow curry flavor.
Leafy green recipes as mallum and sambol
Broccoli Mallum
Kale or Collard or sometimes both prepared as mallum in Sri Lanka. Again, a Sri Lankan favorite, mallum makes an especially vital component of the rice and curry meal. made with flavor infused scraped coconut cooked along with the thinly sliced greens and finished with lime juice, makes it easy to absorb the nutrients in the greens.
Spicy coconut Sambol salad with Arugula
This tasty spin to Sri Lankan spicy coconut Sambol is perfect for pairing with peppery greens. My favorite is to add sliced Arugula and salad greens
Greens as a dip, chutney, or condiment
Curry leaf and green chili chutney
Sri Lankan style coconut green chili and curry leave chutney is one of my favorite dips for cutlets or carrot sticks. Savory spicy flavors perfect for dipping fish cutlets, vegetable sticks or sourdough bread sticks.
Prepping yourself a curry leaf chutney is super easy. Just puree a couple of handfuls of curry leaves, half a cup of coconut, a clove of garlic, three green chilies, teaspoon of turmeric, half a teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of freshly crushed black pepper, tablespoon of lime juice.
Watch the detailed recipe on the link
Coriander Chutney
Coriander chutney is the leafy green recipes cousin of the Sri Lankan curry leaf chutney. Although they look similar and follow similar steps. They have unique delicious flavors of their own. Coriander or mint chutney is perfect to pair with samosa or Pav bhaji for a delicious snack or lunch.
There I concluded listing up my favorite leafy greens recipes I constantly use in my family’s day today meals. I hope you will give them and like them as much as I have come to appreciate. It is such an immense joy to be able to write my favorite recipes, share what I love to cook and eat in ThePerfectCurry blog.
If you have any recipes to share with me and love to share ideas, write to me via my contact e mail. I would love to hear from you.
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3 responses to “Top 10 leafy green recipes to love, crave green vegetables”
Great recipes for these greens. I am a contestant in My Favorite Chef contest. If you get a chance would you vote for me? Here is the link: https://favchef.com/2023/bernadette-laganella
Thank you ! Surely I will. Best of luck
thanks so much!