Kopee Faiy Mashuni

Kopee faiy is a  type of leaf that is used in Maldivian cooking, it's mostly used to make salads and as a vegetable for fish sambal like this one. I do not really know its English name, some say it tastes like kale or is a type of kale but for me, the taste is more like Chinese broccoli or Gai Lan , I once tried this using Gai Lan and it worked pretty well for this recipe.
The leaves are dark green and are quite large, with a purple stem which is removed before slicing. The taste and texture is like a cross between white cabbage and spinach. You find these plants growing near houses on the islands. It's a very tasty leaf and is usually eaten raw and is quite nutritious.

 

Recipe : Kopee Fai Mashuni ( green leaf fish sambal)

4 Kopee fai ( try substituting with Gai  Lan)
1 small onion.
2 limes halved
2  red or green chillies or  if you want a hot one use 1/4 scotch bonnet finely sliced
1/2 cup grated coconut
1 can tuna, oil or water drained and the fish flaked or 1 small fillet smoked tuna fish finely sliced
1-2 teaspoonfuls rihaakuru ( Maldivian fish paste), optional
salt

Cut the onion in half and slice like so, this is the usual way of slicing onions when making salads, and local snacks.

Lay the kopee faiy on a chopping board, remove the stem, stack all the leaves on top of each other and roll up tightly. Finely sliced, I think it's called Chiffonade right? Keep it in a bowl of water.

Place the sliced onions in a bowl, add the juice of 1 lime and a pinch of salt. Using your fingers, squish the onions till they go soft. Once the onions are soft, add chillies and fish, and mix well. Stir in grated coconut. Mix well. Taste adjust salt and add more lime juice to balance.  Serve with flatbread.

If you are using Rihaakuru (it is a staple in almost all Maldivian households) , add 1 teaspoon at a time, add a little water maybe about 2 tbsp and then taste and adjust salt ( or more rihaakuru) and more lime juice if necessary.