Must Try Local Dishes when in Maldives – Tastes of Paradise

Bis Keemiya is a delicious combination of a spring roll and a curry puff, sounds delicious? It is! This lovely crispy pastry is filled with spiced onions, shredded cabbage and hardboiled eggs. The outer shell is light and fluffy and quite the comfort food as you sit gazing out at the glistening ocean. Best of all, this snack is pretty easy to prepare, so, the next time you have that party planned add a new item to the menu, and try your hand at Bis Keemiya, the recipe is available online.

You need to try this very tropical salad like dish when in Maldives. Head over to the capital Male and you have a wide choice of Maldives restaurants to choose from or simply order up a batch from room service; resorts such as Amaya Kuda Rah are perfect for trying out similar snacks amidst beautiful vistas of the ocean. Boshi Mashuni is a combination of shredded coconut, blanched and shredded banana flower and a variety of exotic spices. Add to this lime, hot chilli and onion. Curry leaves, cumin, turmeric and fresh coriander leaves add the final touch, to this, utterly delicious health food, which is a delight to eat.

Maldivians base most dishes on fish, amongst this tuna is a firm favourite. For the soup fresh chunks of tuna are used, it's a staple in most local households. The fish cubes are cooked in water with curry leaves, chilli, onion and garlic. Once done the dish is enhanced with crunchy fried onions and a squeeze of lime juice. Packed full of nutrition this is a fresh and invigorating soup to have at dinner.

Roti is used to mop up spicy curries and wrap up crunchy fish salads. Huni Roshi is very similar to the Sri Lankan pol roti given a Maldivian twist. The Maldivian roti is a mix of flour and fresh coconut which is fried on both sides until the outer layer is crisp and the middle soft and chewy. Perfect for just about any savoury accompaniment, hot-hot Huni Rosh are delectable with a dash of butter and a teaspoon of sugar, for that evening tea snack.

Derived from the stems of tropical palms, sago is a staple in the Maldives and makes up the key ingredient in Saagu Bondibai which is often enjoyed as a snack. It's the kind of dessert you will keep hankering for after the first taste. The pudding is made with warm coconut milk, cardamoms, rose water and heaps of sweet condensed milk. An easy recipe to try for yourself, sago is lauded as being highly nutritious and cooling to the system.