Maldivians love finger foods or snacks made with tuna.  So we make a few varieties of these snacks, like Maldivian fish cake, fish balls, samosas, fish rolls, egg cutlets, cabbage rolls and so on. We love our sweets too so we have Casaava cake, green cake made with coconut milk, caramel pudding and so on. Tharaaweeh is a popular time for family and friends to get together and eat and share food. Some of the most popular desserts are semolina pudding or  suji, cassava pudding and plantain pudding. 

We break fast with dates and some of the savoury and sweet snacks before we eat our main meal. Eid is a special day of celebration, with going to the mosque for Eid prayers, then having breakfast with family and friends. After that we all gather to cook a grand feast, of biryanis, curries followed by rice pudding, custards and so on.Here is my recipe for crispy tuna rolls. Enjoy!

These crispy golden tuna rolls are the perfect finger food to enjoy with a cup of tea. Maldivians love tuna and we love making short eats or snacks or finger foods using tuna. These come in various shapes and sizes, and each one has their own unique taste. While almost all of them will have tuna and chilli, the taste differ from one to the other. Some may be baked like the Maldivian fish cake (kulhi boakibaa) while others are deep fried. But what they have all in common is they are so moreish!  

Tea time and snacks go together. When friends and families get together for afternoon tea, the table is filled with these lovely savoury snacks and sweet ones too. So I hope to make a few of these finger foods and share them with you during this  month of Ramadan, where we are fasting. We love to break our fast with dates and these lovely finger foods before we eat our main meal!

Crispy Tuna Rolls

Ingredients for Filling 

• 1/2 medium onion or 80gram onion thinly sliced
• 1/2 habanero chilli thinly sliced or to taste
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• 1 sprig curry leaves thinly sliced 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1  tin (185g) tuna chunks in oil, drained
• 180 gram or 1 large potato peeled, quartered and boiled until soft

Method

1. Place the onion, chilli, garlic, curry leaves, salt, pepper and lemon juice in a medium sized bowl.
2. Using a disposable glove, mix thoroughly the above ingredients by squeezing the mixture so as to soften the onions and to blend everything together.
3. Add the tuna and mix well.
4. Add the potato and mix everything until the potatoes and the tuna are all blended together.
5. Keep aside. 

Ingredients for Crepe Batter

• 1 cup flour
• 1 egg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water

Method

1. Place all the batter ingredients in a bowl.
2. Using a whisk mix everything until well combined and smooth.
3. For the crepes 
4. Heat a non stick fry pan until hot. 
5. Spray some oil and wipe off.
6. Pour 1 tablespoon of batter onto the pan and using back of the spoon spread it thinly.
7. When the bottom is cooked transfer to a plate. 
8. These are small and thin crepes so no need to turn  over to cook both sides. 
9. Place a tablespoon of the tuna and potato filling on the centre of the  crepe, fold the two opposite sides over the filling and roll up like a spring roll to enclose the filling completely. 
10. Repeat with the rest of the crepes cooking and filling them as you go. I find this method quick and easier than doing all the crepes first  and filling them after, since it might to stick to each other when cold. 
11. Finish all the rolls in this way and keep aside while you get the crumbing ready.

Ingredients For the Crumbing

• 2 eggs lightly beaten
• 1 and 1/2 cups breadcrumbs (I used Panko breadcrumbs)

Method

1. Place the beaten eggs in a shallow container or bowl.
2. Place the breadcrumbs in another container or bowl.
3. Dip each roll in the egg mixture, shaking off excess.
4. Then coat in the breadcrumbs well.
5. Keep aside on a plate.

Frying

1. Fill a deep wok or pot with about 1/3 full of vegetable oil and heat it. 
2. Deep fry in  hot oil, in batches about 5 rolls at a time, until golden and crispy.
3. Remove and drain well on paper towels.
4. Serve warm with chilli sauce and enjoy with a cup of tea.