Bis Keemiya (with Hafifa Sunflower Oil)

Bis Keemiya is a deep fried Maldivian Hedhikaa, filled with onion, cabbage and boiled eggs. There are a couple of different ways to make this; some cook the filling and some don’t. Here we have an updated version of our previous bis keemiya recipe.

For this recipe, we have used the Hafifa Sunflower Oil that was provided to us by one of our partners, Pyramid. This oil can be used for various different cooking needs and doesn’t have strong oily after taste.

Yield: 12 bis keemiyas

Ingredients:

For the filling

• 1 tbsp Hafifa Sunflower Oil
• ½ medium-sized onion thinly sliced
• ¼ scotch bonnet thinly sliced
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 2 hardboiled eggs (cut to cubes)

For the flour

• 1 cup flour
• 1/3 tsp salt
• 2 tsp Hafifa Sunflower Oil
• 8-9 tbsp hot water

For frying

• 1 ½ cup Hafifa Sunflower Oil

Instructions:

1. Heat 1 tbsp Hafifa Sunflower Oil in a medium sized pot on medium heat and add ½ medium-sized onion thinly sliced, ¼ scotch bonnet thinly sliced, 1 cup shredded cabbage, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp ground black pepper. Sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until the onions and the cabbage soften and you can see just a hint of brown on them.
2. Add 2 hardboiled eggs (cut to cubes) and mix gently. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and set it aside so that it can cool down.
3. To make the dough, combine 1 cup flour and 1/3 tsp salt in another bowl. Add in 2 tsp oil and use a spoon to mix it together with the flour.
4. Gradually add in the water, a couple of tablespoons at a time; also, every time you add in the water mix well a spoon.
5. Once the dough starts to come together (it shouldn’t be too wet) start kneading the dough with your hands, until it is soft and elastic. It shouldn’t be sticking to your fingers and it also shouldn’t be too dry.
6. Divide the dough into 12 equally sized balls. Using a rolling pin, roll each dough ball into a circular shape (you can dust the dough balls with some flour before rolling). The size is going to be around 5 inches in diameter. When you are rolling it, it needs to be a little bit thicker than a regular ‘roshi’.
7. Place 1 tablespoon of the egg and cabbage mixture in the center of one of the rolled dough portions. Dip a finger into some water and wet two opposite edges. Then fold in one over the other over the egg filling.
8. Now wet the remaining two edges and fold in a similar manner. Now you should have a pillow-like shape. Just make sure that it is well closed and sealed. Repeat the steps until you run out of dough and filling. You may have some filling leftover.
9. Heat 1 ½ cup oil in a medium-sized pot on high heat for around 3 minutes. Make sure the oil is well heated and then place half of the keemiyas in the oil. You can test the oil by dropping in a little ball of dough. The oil is hot enough when the ball floats and you can see bubbles forming around it. Keep the temperature of the oil at a medium throughout the frying process. If the bubbles are too rapid it means the oil is too hot and if they are too slow it means the oil is too cold.
10. Fry on medium-low heat for 4 to 5 minutes or so until they take on a light golden color and then remove them from the oil. Make sure to flip them halfway through so they are fried evenly. Drain off the excess oil by spreading them over some tissue papers or using a steel strainer. Repeat until you are done with all the prepared keemiyas.