Curries

INDIAN CURRY

Most of the curry powder or paste to be found in this part of the world is a mixture of ¼ of dried chilli, ¼ coriander, ½ dagatafolum; but the native curry cook uses a much larger variety of spices and likes to grind them himself fresh daily between two stones. The spices commonly used are:

A FRICASSEE OF CHICKEN

(Ceylon style)

Cut 2 good-sized chickens in 8 pieces. Season with salt and pepper; put in a saucepan with about 1 quart of cocoanut milk; add to this a little cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon fresh coriander, ¼ teaspoon of powdered saffron, a little red pimento, and boil until tender; at the last minute thicken the sauce with 4 yolks of eggs mixed well with ½ pint cocoanut cream; keep hot but do not boil, as the richness of the ingredients would make it curdle. As this curry is not hot it is served with a sambo which consists of small dishes on one tray containing such savories as plain scraped cocoanut, pimento paste, and chopped onion with a red pepper sauce.

To obtain cocoanut cream, use the same process as that for ordinary cream;—as for the milk: have 3 fresh cocoanuts scraped very fine to which you add 3 pints of water, stir together for a few moments, then strain, let this milk stand for 3 hours to obtain the cream.

A SIMPLER INDIAN CURRY

One lb. of beef, mutton, fish, or vegetables, as desired. One tablespoon of curry powder, 1 heaping tablespoon of butter, 1 onion, ½ fresh cocoanut, juice of half a lemon, salt to taste. Curry powder to be mixed in 2 ozs. of water. Onion to be finely chopped. Cocoanut to be scraped and soaked in a teacup of boiling water, then squeezed, and the milk (or the liquid) to be put in the curry. First cook the butter till it bubbles, put in the onion and let it brown, add the curry powder, and let that cook a few minutes; if it becomes too dry and sticks to the pan add a little hot water. Then put in the meat (raw), cut in small pieces, fish, or vegetables, and fry them, add salt, and if dry, add a little more water, let all simmer till meat is thoroughly done; when about half done, add the cocoanut milk and the lemon-juice.

If not convenient to use the cocoanut milk, ordinary milk can be used, and the mixture thickened with a little flour. Cocoanut milk thickens without flour. When the butter separates and shows itself in the gravy, the curry is ready for serving. Curry should be served with plain boiled rice. Pass rice first, then curry.

If Indian chutney is served with curry it is a great addition. A banana may be cut up in pieces about half-inch thick, and added to the curry mixture while cooking, and is a pleasant addition to the flavour.

ANOTHER CURRY SAUCE

Chop 1 onion and 1 apple and cook them in 1 oz. of butter about 10 minutes, but do not let them brown. Add 1 dessert-spoonful of mild curry powder, the grated rind and juice of ½ a lemon, ½ pint of water or stock, some salt, and 1 tablespoonful of seedless raisins, and simmer until the onion is quite tender. Unless added to rice or paste put in 1 dessert-spoonful of flour after the onion and apple have cooked about 10 minutes.