Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Kukulhu Riha
A gently spiced Maldivian chicken curry simmered in coconut milk with curry leaves, pandan and island spices.
Maldivian · easy · serves 4
prep 20 min · cook 40 min
~701 cal · 59g protein · 12g carbs · 46g fat · 3g fiber · 5g sugars · 24g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Kukulhu riha is a beloved home-style chicken curry of the Maldives, gently spiced and enriched with , and pandan. It reflects the archipelago long trade with South Asia, the Middle East and East Africa, with island cooks softening imported spices into the abundant coconut of their shores.
Milder and more coconut-forward than most South Asian curries, it is simmered slowly until the chicken is tender and the sauce rich, then served with rice or the coconut flatbread roshi. It is everyday island cooking at its most comforting.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
2 lb chicken, in pieces
1 1/2 cups
1 large onion, finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger, grated
1/4 cup
1 pandan leaf, torn
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tbsp dried red chilies or chili powder
1 cinnamon stick
3 pods
1 lime, juiced
3 tbsp vegetable oil
to taste salt
Instructions
1
Marinate the chicken with the lime juice, half the garlic and ginger, the turmeric and a little salt for 20 minutes.
2
Heat the oil and fry the onion, curry leaves, pandan, cinnamon and cardamom until the onion is soft and golden.
3
Add the remaining garlic and ginger, then the cumin, coriander and chili, and cook a minute until fragrant.
4
Add the chicken and brown it in the spices, then pour in a splash of water, cover, and simmer about 20 minutes until nearly cooked.
✎ Chef’s note
Add the coconut milk only near the end and keep it at a gentle simmer so it does not split.
5
Stir in the coconut milk and simmer gently 10 to 15 minutes more until the chicken is tender and the sauce is rich. Serve with rice or roshi.
Maldivian home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Malé. Three things do nearly all the work here: tuna, coconut and a starch. There is very little farmland, so the sea provides the protein and the palm the fat, while rice and flour are largely imported. Rihaakuru, a thick brown tuna paste boiled down over many hours, is the pantry staple behind all of it.
🗺️
Maldives. Mas huni is the name written plainly: mas is fish and huni is coconut. Cured tuna is shredded and worked by hand with freshly grated coconut, onion, chilli and lime, and eaten at breakfast with huni roshi, a coconut flatbread. The lime and the raw onion are what keep it from being heavy first thing in the morning.
🌍
Asia. A grain line runs across the continent. Rice dominates the wet south and east, wheat the drier north and west, and the tools follow it: the wok and the steamer where rice is milled, the tandoor and the griddle where wheat is ground. Tea travels the other way, drunk green, black, salted, buttered or with milk depending how far it got from China.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Maldives
Mas HuniShredded smoked tuna tossed with grated coconut, onion, chili, and lime, the Maldivian breakfast, with roshi flatbread.
Mas RihaA Maldivian tuna curry in a fragrant coconut sauce with curry leaves, pandan, and dried chili.
GarudhiyaA clear, fragrant tuna broth served over rice with lime, chili, and onion, the everyday heart of the Maldivian table.
Browse all Maldives recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Maldives meal
Foni BoakibaaDessert
Bis KeemiyaLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Kukulhu Riha?
A gently spiced Maldivian chicken curry simmered in coconut milk with curry leaves, pandan and island spices.
Where does Kukulhu Riha come from?
Kukulhu Riha is a Maldivian dish from Malé, Maldives.
Can Kukulhu Riha be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Kukulhu Riha recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Kukulhu Riha safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Kukulhu Riha take to make?
About 60 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 40 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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