Fish Ambul Thiyal for a dinner party — went down extremely well

I made Fish Ambul Thiyal for eight guests who had varying familiarity with the cuisine. Every single person asked for the recipe. The fiery and aromatic profile was the main talking point — no one had quite experienced Maldive fish chips used that way before.

Maldive fish is a uniquely Sri Lankan ingredient with no close equivalent elsewhere. I explained the a Jaffna Tamil restaurant context as I served it which helped people appreciate it fully. ginger beer was what I offered alongside and it worked perfectly. Excellent dinner party dish — impressive without being inaccessible.