What is Gotu Kola?
Gotu Kola (GotuKola), also called Centella Asiatica, Indian pennywort or Asiatic pennywort is a herb in the parsley family that is native to the wetlands in Asia. It is used in many cuisine including Burmese, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai or Sri Lankan. Gotu Kola has numerous health benefits, including the power to boost overall cognitive function, increase longevity, and heal skin issues. Due to its medicinal properties, it is used widely in chinese and ayurvedic medicine. Gotu Kola benefits are also utilized in western medicine, where it is used to treat varicose veins.
Sri Lankan Centella Asiatica Recipes
GotuKola is used in a wide variety of Sri Lankan cuisine. Sri Lankan dishes prepared using Gotu Kola including Gotu Kola Curry, Gotu Kola Mallum/Sambol, and Gotu Kola Kanda (herbal porridge). Gotu Kola sambol (also called as Gotu Kola mallum or Gotu Kola sambola) is a traditional sri lankan dish that is essentially an easy pennywort salad created in 10 minutes. The longest time in this recipe is used to chop all the gotu kola leaves. After the chopping is done, just mix everything and add some lime juice. This is one of the easiest dishes to prepare!
How to Grow Gotu Kola
Gotu Kola can be grown from seed or from a tiny cutting. Gotu Kola grows well in gardens in USDA plant hardiness zones 9b or above. If you don’t live in these zones, you can still grow it in a pot. Gotu Kola thrives in warmer climates and should be watered regularly.
Using a tiny cutting (with roots), I have grown Gotu Kola in a small pot and followed it’s progress over five months. During the winter months, the pot was moved inside my house to keep ideal conditions for growth. Gotu Kola will die at temperatures below zero. Here are the pictures of Gotu Kola growth progress on my small balcony.
What type of green leaves can be substituted for Gotu Kola?
Since Gotu Kola is a member of the Parsley family, Parsley leaves can be substituted for Gotu Kola in this recipe, to make a delicious and healthy salad.
What is Gotu Kola?
In Sri Lankan cuisine, Gotu Kola sambol is served on hot white / red rice, with other curry dishes.
- Dhal Curry – The most delicious vegan side dish to serve with ANY curry, rice, naan, or bread. Try this mild dhal curry or a spicy and creamy red lentil curry
- Sri Lankan Chicken Curry or Spicy Fish Curry (Malu Mirisata)
- Other vegetarian and vegan dishes – Spicy mushroom curry, green mango curry, fried potatoes, beetroot curry
- In the picture below, Gotu Kola Sambola is served on white rice with a Spicy Shrimp Curry in a simple and flavorful Sri Lankan meal
What Ingredients do you need to make this Gotu Kola Sambola?
- Gotu Kola / Pennywort / Centella asiatica (bunch of leaves)
- Shredded Coconut (or Grated Fresh Coconut)
- Red Pearl onions
- Green chillies (optional)
- Lemon / lime juice
- Pinch of salt
Tips and Tricks to perfect this Centella Asiatica Recipe
- Using fresh coconut will taste the best, but frozen coconut also works in this recipe. In the US, shredded coconut can be found in the frozen section of any asian grocery store. Make sure you buy the ‘shredded’ and not ‘chunks’ of frozen coconut
- Green chili is optional in this recipe since it adds a lot of heat into the sambola. Use sparingly or omit completely based on your spice tolerance.
- Substitute the red pearl onions with about half or quarter of a regular onion (red). White onions do not add flavor to any sambola dish, so they are not recommended to use in this recipe
Other Sri Lankan Sambola / Mallum Recipes
- Gova Kola Mallum – Quick and easy recipe using Cabbage Leaves
- Pol Sambola – Shredded coconut mixed with spices. A classic Sri Lankan dish
If you try this recipe, please leave a comment below. I would love to get your feedback. As always, love and good vibes to you all. Happy Cooking!
Sri Lankan Gotu Kola Mallum
Ingredients
- 1 cup Gotu kola chopped finely
- 4 Pearl onions chopped finely
- 2 tbsp Grated coconut
Dressing
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 1 tsp Salt
Instructions
- Wash gotu kola well, and then soak it in salt water to get rid of insects
- Chop gotu kola and pearl onions finely
- Add the grated coconut coconut, lemon juice and salt
- Mix well and eat!
How to Make Gotu Kola Sambol
Freshly cut and washed gotu kola leaves from the garden
Take one cup of shredded coconut and a few pearl onions. Regular red onions can also be used in place of the pearl onions. Shredded coconut can be either freshly grated coconut or buy the frozen shredded coconut from the grocery store, and thaw it well before use.
Chop the gotu kola leaves and onions. Here I have about one whole cup of chopped leaves. If you have more leaves, add more coconut and onions to your mallum.
Add all the chopped ingredients into a bowl and mix well.
Add the salad dressings (salt and lemon juice) according to your taste and mix well. Start with a little salt and add more to your taste. Else, you might end up with a mallum that is too salty. Pair with any rice and curry dish, or eat by itself. Enjoy!
