Bambukeyo Bongara (Maldives Breadfruit Curry)

Bambukeyo Bongara (Maldives Breadfruit Curry) is a traditional Maldivan (from the Maldives) recipe for a classic curry of breadfruit and smoked tuna in a spiced base flaroured with fish sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Maldivan version of: Maldives Breadfruit Curry (Bambukeyo Bongara).

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

35 minutes

Total Time:

55 minutes

Serves:

4–5

Rating:

Tags : Curry Spice Recipes Bread Recipes Maldives Recipes

This is a classic breadfruit curry from Mauritius that uses Mauritian fish paste ‘rihaakuru’. My wife loves breadfruit, so I'm always on the lookout for new breadfruit recipes.

Ingredients:

For for cooking the breadfruit:
½ small breadfruit (around 3 cups when sliced)
1 onion, thinly sliced
175g (¾ cup) smoked tuna, cut into 12mm thick slices
1l (4 cups) water
8cm piece of pandan leaf
5 curry leaves
1/3 tsp salt (or to taste)

Ingredients for spice paste
½ small onion, thinly sliced
12mm piece of ginger
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp coriander seeds
½ tbsp cumin seeds
½ tbsp fennel seeds
4 dried red chillies (or to taste)
½ tsp black peppercorns
¼ tsp turmeric powder
12mm length cinnamon
2 cardamom pods
75g (1 cup) grated coconut
5 curry leaves

Ingredients for finishing the curry
¼ scotch bonnet chilli (or to taste)
250ml (1 cup) thin coconut milk
1 ½ tbsp rihaakuru (Maldives fish sauce) (or to taste)
60ml (¼ cup) thick coconut milk
½ lime
½ tsp salt (or to taste)

Method:

Peel the breadfruit, remove the core and wash thoroughly. Slice into 12mm thick pieces and set aside.

Bring the water to a boil in a large pot, add the breadfruit, onion, smoked tuna, pandan, curry leaves and salt and cook on medium heat until the breadfruit is soft (about 20 minutes). Use a fork to test for doneness.

While the breadfruit is cooking, thinly slice the onion, ginger and garlic.

Add all the ingredients listed under 'spice paste' to a large pan and mix well. Turn the heat to medium-low and toast the mixture until the coconut looks golden brown and you can smell the spices (about 4 minutes). Remember to stir frequently so that the spices don’t burn.

Turn the mixture onto a plate to cool down, then transfer to an electric grinder and grind to a smooth paste. You can add a few tablespoons of water to help make it smooth (about 3 tbsp should be enough).

When the breadfruit is cooked, add the spice paste to the pot along with the scotch bonnet pepper, mix well to combine and cook over low heat for around 5 minutes.

At this point add the thin coconut milk, mix well and cook for a furhter 5 minutes.

Add the rihaakuru, thick coconut milk and lime juice. Mix well to combine and cook for 2 minutes. At this point tastttte the curry and adjust the seasonings to taste.

Serve hot.