The Maldives – Thukaree Riha (Maldivian Vegetable Curry)

by Fariha Saeed

About the dish

Vegetable curry is a very common dish in many countries but Maldavian vegetable curry is so delicious and very different from a very common vegetable curry. It has a lot of vegetables in it. Of course, it will have vegetables in it because it is vegetable curry. It has potato, peas, carrot, cabbage, onion, bell pepper, etc. This dish has a special place in people’s hearts. This is not soo dry it has a little bit of thick gravy in it and this is why it is called VEGETABLE CURRY. The texture of the curry is so smooth and a little bit thick. The texture of vegetables is soft and mushy. When you bite the vegetables they will melt in your mouth. It is very popular in the Maldives. People also call this vegetable gravy. You can have this with Chappati, rice, bread or roshi, etc. People also like to eat it alone. You can also have a side dish with it like any kind of dip you like or salad etc. This is available at restaurants and also at street vendors. People like to crave this hot in winter knights. You can eat it as a snack or lunch or whatever you like. You have to wait for so long in the line to get this goodness. This is so appetizing that will make you droll. The color of this goodness is bright yellow and this color came from turmeric. People love to eat it with rice you can have any type of rice with it like:

• boiled rice
• fried rice
• vegetable rice
• egg rice
• chinese rice
• onion rice

You can also add cream or coconut milk to make the curry more delicious and the texture will be a little bit thicker but it will taste amazing. Almost every dish in the Maldives has coconut in it. It adds some kind of exotic flavor to the dish. This dish is also very healthy as it contains vegetables.

History

In the history of the Maldives, Maldivian cuisine is originated from a blend of different ingredients like coconut, coconut milk, fish, vegetable, seafood, and spices. After several years another cuisine has been made ”Maldivian cuisine or Dhivehi cuisine”. Over time it becomes very popular in different countries like Indonesia, Kuwait, Sri Lanka, and many other countries.

Nutrition list

• calories 198
• fat 3 g
• carbohydrates 189

Ingredients

• potatoes 2 (cubes) 1 inch
• carrots 2 (cut in slices)
• cauliflower 1 (break into pieces)
• peas 1/2 kg
• cabbage 1 (sliced)
• water 5 cups
• salt 1 tbsp
• red chili 2 tbsp
• cumin 1 tsp
• dry coriander 1 tbsp
• oil 1 cup
• coconut cream 1 cup
• turmeric 1 tbsp

Cooking

Take a pot and add the water to it and turn the flame medium. When the water starts to boil add potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, peas, and cabbage in it and boil them for 15 minutes. Do not overcook it. You can check it by inserting a toothpick in the vegetables. You should have to semi cook the vegetables.

Now take a pan and add oil, red chili, cumin, turmeric, dry coriander, and coconut cream in it and fry until all the spices are roasted and mixed with the cream. Now add the cream mixture to the vegetable pot and mix very well. Now cove the lid for 20 minutes. Now serve with rice.