Traditional Maldivian

Maldives

The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...

 cuisine is based on the following three main items and their derivatives:

Coconuts

The coconut

Coconut

The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...

 is used in the grated form, squeezed to obtain coconut milk, or as coconut oil

Coconut oil

Coconut oil is an edible oil extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts harvested from the coconut palm . Throughout the tropical world, it has provided the primary source of fat in the diets of millions of people for generations. It has various applications in food, medicine, and industry...

 in dishes that are deep-fried. Hunigondi is the traditional Maldivian implement used to grate the coconut. It is a long low chair with a serrated steel blade at its end. The grated coconut is soaked in water and squeezed in order to obtain coconut milk (kaashi kiru). The coconut milk is an essential ingredient in many Maldivian curries and other dishes

Fish

The favourite fish

Fish (food)

Fish is a food consumed by many species, including humans. The word "fish" refers to both the animal and to the food prepared from it. Fish has been an important source of protein for humans throughout recorded history.-Terminology:...

 is skipjack tuna

Skipjack tuna

The skipjack tuna, Katsuwonus pelamis, is a medium-sized perciform fish in the tuna family, Scombridae. It is otherwise known as the aku, arctic bonito, mushmouth, oceanic bonito, striped tuna, or victor fish...

, either dried or fresh. Other favourite fishes are little tunny

Little tunny

The little tunny is the most common tuna in the Atlantic Ocean. It is found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean; in the western Atlantic, it ranges from Brazil to the New England states. It is found regularly in offshore and inshore waters, and is...

 (latti), yellowfin tuna

Yellowfin tuna

The yellowfin tuna is a species of tuna found in pelagic waters of tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide.Yellowfin is often marketed as ahi, from its Hawaiian name ahi although the name ahi in Hawaiian also refers to the closely related bigeye tuna. The species name, albacares can lead to...

 (kanneli), frigate tuna

Frigate tuna

The frigate tuna or frigate mackerel, Auxis thazard thazard, is a subspecies of tuna, in the family Scombridae, found around the world in tropical oceans.-References:...

 (raagondi), bigeye scad

Bigeye scad

The bigeye scad is an oceanic fish that is found around the globe in tropical regions. Other common names include akule, chicharro, charrito ojón, purse-eye scad, coulirou, and goggle-eyed scad. Bigeye scads are fished commercially and are very important to aquaculture.Bigeye scads are blue-green...

 (mushimas), wahoo

Wahoo

The wahoo is a scombrid fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas. It is best known to sports fishermen, as its speed and high-quality flesh make it a prize game fish...

 (kurumas) and Mahi-mahi

Mahi-mahi

The mahi-mahi or common dolphinfish is a surface-dwelling ray-finned fish found in off-shore temperate, tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. It is one of only two members of the Coryphaenidae family, the other being the pompano dolphinfish...

 (fiyala). These can be eaten boiled or processed.

The processed tuna (Maldive fish

Maldive fish

Maldive fish is cured tuna fish traditionally produced in Maldives. It is a staple of the Maldivian cuisine, as well as of the Sri Lankan cuisine, and in the past it was one of the main exports from Maldives to Sri Lanka, where it is known as umbalakaḍa....

) pieces are used in pieces or in shavings. In order to make curries, the raw or the still-soft processed tuna is cut into 1/2 in sections. Dry processed tuna is mainly used to make short eats called gulha, kavaabu, bajiyaa (the local version of the Indian Samosa) and fatafolhi. Unlike most Pacific islanders, Maldivians don't have the tradition of eating raw fish.

Starchy items

These are starch

Starch

Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...

es like rice, which is eaten boiled or ground into flour, tubers like taro

Taro

Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...

 (ala), sweet potato (kattala) or tapioca (dandialuvi), as well as fruits like breadfruit

Breadfruit

Breadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry family, Moraceae, growing throughout Southeast Asia and most Pacific Ocean islands...

 (bambukeyo) or screwpine (kashikeyo).
Tubers and breadfruit are eaten boiled. The screwpine fruit is mostly eaten raw after having been cut into thin slices.