Joanna James
Drops of paradise set amidst the Indian Ocean, the archipelagic country of the Maldives renowned for picture-postcard beaches and breathtaking tropical nature is also home to a local cuisine just as incredible. Come, let your taste buds revel in the mouth-watering flavours of the island nation.
Enjoyed both as a broth and a soup, Garudhiya is a simple staple of Maldivian cuisine. The primary ingredient of the nourishing soup is tuna, which can be found in abundance in a variety of species such as skipjack, yellowfin tuna, little tunny, and frigate tuna in the waters surrounding the island nation. The secondary ingredients, which usually include curry and pandan leaves, onions, and fresh chilli peppers are added to little chunks of tuna simmered in water to attain the steaming bowl goodness, that is Garudhiya.
A Maldivian twist that strikes a mix of the classic Indian samosa and spring rolls, nothing makes for a great bite like Bis Keemiya when out strolling the bustling streets of Male. A savoury snack often available as street food, Bis Keemiya, in its basic form, is a deep-fried dough filled with tuna, boiled egg, curry leaves, onions, garlic, ginger, peas, and chilli. It is a tidbit that can be relished by both vegs and non-vegs, as it is just a matter of including the tuna and egg or not.
A traditional dish with roots deeply embedded in the archipelagic nation, Kulhimas is one of the many dishes of the authentic Maldivian cuisine that has tuna as the main ingredient, which should come as no surprise as the country is surrounded by nothing but wide-open seas. Unlike any other tuna dish in the Maldives, Kulhimas is super spicy and is sure to satisfy your peppery cravings. It is a widely popular dish served at all fine dining restaurants in the Maldives, such as the ones offered by the likes of Amaya Kuda Rah.
Kick off your mornings in the Maldives with a mouthful of flavourful Mas Huni, a traditional Maldivian breakfast and a local favourite dish. Preparation of Mas Huni is pretty easy as well, where all the ingredients, tuna, onions, shredded coconut, and chilli peppers, are thrown into a bowl and mixed together, making it a perfect dish in the morning rush, even outside the island nation. The tuna-dominant dish is often served as an accompaniment to huni roshi, the bread in the Maldives.
No matter whether you taste your way through assortments of local dishes, your Maldivian culinary journey wouldn't be complete without tasting the dumpling-like Gulha. A deep-fried pastry ball stuffed with a filling of, unsurprisingly, tuna, onion, grated coconut, and chilli, Gulha is regarded as one of the national dishes and a short eat relished throughout the country, by the young and old alike.
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