Pumpkin will never be considered a glamorous food! Not true, exclaims Nihal Senanayake, executive chef at the luxurious Lighthouse Hotel & Spa, Galle. Pumpkin, he enthuses has moved far away from the homely pies and mustard-rich curries we grew up with and is becoming more the essential ingredient in fine dinning.

As 10 foot waves crash against the foot of the hotel from a sea boasting all its vibrant hues, chef Nihal grabs a pumpkin to prove his point. Peeling and dicing pumpkin, he elaborates, Lighthouse Hotel & Spa, just kilometers from fort, emulates the Portuguese presence that still strongly pervades. Of course, the influence is so corrupted it is barely recognizable as Portuguese anymore. Nevertheless, the fiery, adventurous flavors Galle is famous for, roots from Portuguese.

His latest creation, Spicy Pumpkin Soup in Flame-tossed Seafood, which could easily be a main meal as much as just a soup, speaks to Galle people in a way the creamy pumpkin soup we’re used to never could. With strong cumin rushing into the palette with understated seafood flavors accentuated with pumpkin sweetness, one has to agree with chef Nihal – pumpkin is no longer homely food.