By Jehan Yusoof  |  Updated October 21, 2026  | ★ 4.2 (6 reviews) | 

Calamari curry recipe (දැල්ලෝ කරි), cooked with curry powders and coconut milk, is a dish you’re going to love cooking, thanks to its delicious flavours.
Whether you call it a calamari curry, a cuttlefish curry, or even”dallo curry” in Sinhalese.

If you try this, I’d love to know how it turned out. Just tap the stars★ in the recipe card; it helps other cooks find this recipe.

What Is Dallo (Calamari) Curry?

Dallo (also spelled) is the Sinhala word for cuttlefish and squid.
Dallo curry is the Sri Lankan coconut milk curry made with dark curry powder and black pepper. Outside Sri Lanka, it’s called calamari, squid, or cuttlefish curry.

Ingredients to cook calamari curry (dallo)

You’ll find exact quantities in the recipe card below.

• For blanching
  • Cleaned calamari, squid, or cuttlefish, cut into rings
  • Water as needed
  • Turmeric powder: cleans and removes odour, helps to cook a flavorful calamari colour.
  • Salt
• For the calamari (dallo) gravy
  • Oil: Use coconut oil or any type of neutral oil except avocado or olive oil.
  • A sprig of curry leaves adds aroma and Sri Lankan flavours to the calamari curry.
  • Ginger and garlic paste: adds flavour and aroma to the calamari curry.
  • Medium-sized onions, chopped fine
  • Cinnamon piece
  • Green chillies, split (optional)
  • Banana peppers (optional ingredient)
  • Spice powders: turmeric powder, red chilli powder, fresh ground black pepper (increase by a teaspoon if necessary).
  • Sri Lankan curry powder, raw or roasted: not the yellow curry powder sold in US supermarkets.
  • You can make your own: Sri Lankan raw curry powder or Jaffna curry powder
    • You can also substitute this with 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cumin powder and 3 tablespoons coriander powder.
  • Sugar: adds a bit of sweetness to the seafood curry.
  • Thick coconut milk: adds creaminess and elevates the dallo curry.
  • Salt to season

Tips and suggestion to cook calamari curry

• Before you start
  • Clear the sink, keep a lined bin nearby and open a window.
  • If your rubbish isn’t collected daily, double-bag the waste and freeze it until collection day.
• Choosing fresh cuttlefish
  • Cleaned frozen calamari rings save time.
  • If you start with fresh cuttlefish or squid, watch my video on how to clean calamari.
  • The skin should be wet and shiny and smell of the sea, never sour.
  • For frozen packs, check the packing date and avoid heavy ice crystals, a sign of freezer burn.

What you will need in the kitchen.

• Knife and chopping board
• A large bowl with a bag to collect waste
• One medium-sized cooking pan
• A medium-sized deep wok

How to make Sri Lankan calamari curry (dallo curry)

PHOTO TUTORIAL

Blanch the Calamari

Fill a medium-sized pan with water and bring it to a boil.
Add turmeric powder, garlic-ginger paste, and salt to season.
Reduce heat to medium, then add the calamari rings to the boiling water.

Boil the cuttlefish for exactly 2 minutes (time it if necessary).
Once the 2 minutes are done, immediately drain the water from the cuttlefish and set aside until you add the cuttlefish to the gravy.

Make the Gravy

Place a wok or cooking pan over low to medium heat and pour in the oil.
Once the oil heats, add the curry leaves (a sprig) and the ginger-garlic paste.
Cook over low heat for 2 minutes.

Add the chopped onions, green chillies, cinnamon piece, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the banana peppers (optional).
Cook until they turn slightly soft. 3 minutes over low-medium fire.

Add the spice powders

Add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, pepper powder, raw curry powder(you can substitute with regular curry powder or 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cumin powder and 3 tablespoons of coriander powder).
You can also add Jaffna curry powder or roasted curry powder for a more intense and spicier taste.

Cook the spices with the other ingredients in the pan over low heat.

The result would be a wet, oily spice paste.
Depending on the curry powder used (mentioned above), you will have a darker or lighter colour wet spice paste.
My spice paste is darker because I used roasted curry powder.
Cook the paste for 2 minutes over low fire and avoid burning it.

Pour in the coconut milk. Slightly increase the heat for the gravy to simmer while thickening. 3 to 5 minutes.

Add sugar and season with salt; taste to balance the gravy flavour.
Slow-simmer the gravy for 10 to 15 minutes until it thickens and the colour changes to a dark brown colour.

Simmer and Season

Once the “dallo” gravy reaches the right colour and consistency, add the cuttlefish.
Reduce the heat and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the gravy thickens and begins coating the calamari.

As the curry cooks, you can add pepper, curry powder, chilli powder, and a little bit more sugar to balance the taste.
Add only if you need to increase spiciness, or leave out adding spices at this point.

Once the gravy is thick and lightly coats the cuttlefish, serve the curry warm and enjoy with your favourite rice and curry dish mentioned below.

What to serve with calamari curry

• Rice: White rice, ghee rice, or Sri Lankan yellow rice
• Vegetable curries
  • Potato curry
  • Wambatu moju (eggplant pickle)
  • Sri Lankan Dhal curry
  • Beetroot Curry
  • Mango curry(my grandmother’s recipe)
  • Sri Lankan string bean curry
• Mallums and sambols
• Pol Sambol (Coconut Sambol)
• Gotu kola sambol(pennywort salad)
• Spinach and coconut stir-fry(nivithi mallung)

More Sri Lankan Seafood Recipes

• Hot butter cuttlefish
• Sri Lankan creamy fish curry (thalapath fish curry)
• Sri Lankan Devilled Prawns (Prawn Devil)
• Sri Lankan prawn curry (shrimp curry)
• Ambulthiyal(Sri Lankan sour fish curry)
• Sri Lankan red chilli fish curry (miris malu)
• Sri Lankan creamy fish curry(thalapath fish curry)
• Deviled fish (Sri Lankan Chilli fish stir-fry)

Frequently asked questions on calamari curry

• Calamari, squid, cuttlefish: is there a difference?
  • They belong to the same family and can easily replace each other to make your seafood dish.
  • The difference comes in the texture, price, and fins or tails.
  • Calamari is more suited to cooking as the flesh is tender, they have longer fins and are more expensive than squid.
• Can all parts of the calamari, squid, and cuttlefish be eaten?
  • Once you’ve removed the outer skin, the glass-like bone within the cavity of the cuttlefish and scraped off the gel-like substance, yes, you can.
  • The head, tentacles, fins, and even the ink can be used to prepare seafood dishes.
• Can I Use Frozen Calamari Rings?
  • Yes. Thaw them in the fridge overnight or sealed under cold running water — never at room temperature — and pat them dry.
• Why Does My Calamari Curry Go Rubbery?
  • Usually from long, hard boiling. Blanch for exactly 2 minutes, then simmer gently in the gravy. For thin squid rings, shorten both times.
• How much calamari/cuttlefish should I buy?
  • You have to keep in mind that more than half of the cuttlefish’s weight will be reduced once you clean them.
  • For two people, I would suggest 500-700g.
  • For my family of 6(2 adults, 2 teens, 2 under 12-year-olds), I find 1kg of cuttlefish enough for a single serving.
  • Yet the family complains that this is not enough when shared among themselves.
  • So, for 5-6 people, I would suggest about 1 and 1/2kg to 2kg.
  • Try to get the cuttlefish cleaned at the seafood stall if possible.

Storage, Freezing, and Reheating Dallo curry

• Storing
  • Calamari curry is heavily spiced. Please use old plastic containers or glass containers so they don’t stain your new containers.
  • Even wooden spoons stain unless you are using coconut husk spoons, which are more resistant to stains.
• Freezing
  • It can freeze only up to 4 days, as the texture and taste will change the longer it’s kept frozen. If refrigerating, use within 2 days.
• Reheating
  • AVOID HEATING IN YOUR MICROWAVE, as it will lead to an unpleasant odour in your microwave.
  • Use the stovetop; take the curry out and let it reach room temperature.
  • Transfer to a cooking pan, add 1/4 cup water, and heat it for 3 minutes.
• Stop food waste by
  • Unless cooking for a crowd, cook only as much as you need. Leftovers can only be used for 2 days.

Watch more Sri Lankan recipes on my YouTube channel

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JEHAN
Recipe creator. Food Blogger. Video creator
I’ve been cooking and sharing Sri Lankan recipes, along with other dishes I love making at home on Island Smile since 2015. I’ve tested every recipe on this site more than once in my own kitchen before it goes on the blog.
I grew up eating this food, and I still cook it the same way my family taught me, just written down clearly enough that you can follow it too.
If a recipe doesn’t work the way I say it will, tell me in the comments; I read every one, and I’ll help you fix it.