Recipes
Historical Recipes
Abul Fazl’s Ingredients for Dopiaza as served at Akbar’s court (c. 1600)
— from Abu’l fazl ‘allami, The A’in-I Akbari, trans. H. Blochman, 1989
10 seers* meat that is middling fat
2 seers ghee [clarified butter]
2 seers onions
¼ seer salt
seer fresh pepper
1 dam** each of cumin seed, coriander seed, cardamoms and cloves
2 dams pepper
The King of Oudh’s Curry
— from Emma Robert’s edition of Maria Rundell’s A New System of Domestic Cookery, 1842
Take half a pound of fresh butter, two large onions, a gill of good gravy (veal is best), one large pressed tablespoon of curry powder; add to these ingredients any kind of meat cut into pieces. Put the whole into a stewpan, cover it close, and gently simmer for two hours. When ready to serve up, squeeze as much lemon juice as will give it an acid flavour.
Wyvern’s Chicken Curry (The Platonic Ideal of an Anglo-Indian Chicken Curry)
— from Culinary Jottings from Madras, 1878
Cut a small chicken into pieces and dredge with a little flour. Make a cup of stock with the trimmings and bones, a sliced onion, carrot, pepper corns, celery, salt and sugar and another cup of coconut or almond milk.
In a stew pan, sauté six shallots or two small white onions cut into rings and a clove of finely minced garlic in two ounces of good quality tinned butter until yellow brown. Add a heaping tablespoon of the stock curry powder and one of the paste, or, if the latter is not available, two tablespoons of the powder. Cook for a minute or two, adding slowly a wineglassful of the coconut milk and then the broth. Simmer for a quarter of an hour to create a rich, thick, curry sauce. Keep the sauce warm while you prepare the chicken.
In a frying pan, fry a minced shallot in an ounce of butter or clarified beef suet for a couple of minutes, then lightly fry the chicken pieces. As soon as they are lightly coloured, place them in the gravy in the stew pan, marinating for at least half an hour. Then slowly simmer the mixture over a low fire, adding stock or water if needed to cover the chicken.
During this period, the bay leaf, chutney, and sweet acid should be added. If the paste was not added previously, pounded almond and coconut are now added with a little spice and grated green ginger. The curry should be tasted and more acid or sweet added if needed. As soon as the pieces are tender, a coffee cupful of coconut milk should be added and stirred for three minutes. If a dry curry is needed, the curry is simmered longer without the lid, but continually stirred so that the meat doesn’t stick on the bottom.
Remove the seeds and juice from two or three tomatoes, chop them with a quarter of their bulk of white onion, and season the mixture with salt, two finely chopped green chillies, a bit of chopped celery, a pinch of black pepper, and a teaspoon of vinegar (preferably anchovy vinegar if available).
Dr Riddell’s Country Captain Chicken
— from Indian Domestic Economy and Receipt Book, 1849
Cut a fowl in pieces; shred an onion small and fry it brown in butter; sprinkle the fowl with fine salt and curry powder and fry it brown; then put it into a stewpan with a pint of soup; stew it slowly down to a half and serve it with rice.
Mrs Beeton’s Curried Mutton
— from Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management, 1861
The remains of any joint of cold mutton
2 onions
¼ lb butter
2 dessertspoons curry powder
1 dessertspoon flour
¼ pint of stock of water
Slice the onions in thin rings and put them into a stewpan with the butter, and fry until a light brown; stir in the curry powder, flour and salt, and mix all well together.
Cut the meat into nice thin slices (if there is not sufficient to do this, it may be minced), and add it to the other ingredients; when well browned, add the stock of gravy and stew gently for about ½ hour. Serve in a dish with a border of boiled rice.
Eliza Acton’s Bengal Currie
— from Modern Cookery for Private Families, 1845
6 large onions
2 oz. butter
1 clove of garlic
1 dessertspoonful of turmeric
1 tsp each of powdered ginger, salt and cayenne
½ cup of gravy
1½ lb of meat
Preparation time: 1 hour or more.
Slice and fry three large onions in the butter, and lift them out of the pan when done. Put into a stewpan three other large onions and a small clove of garlic which have been pounded together, and smoothly mixed with a dessertspoonful of the best pale turmeric, a teaspoonful of powdered ginger, one of salt, and one cayenne pepper; add to these the butter in which the onions were fired, and half a cupful of good gravy: let them stew for about ten minutes, taking care that they shall not burn. Next, stir to them the fried onions and half a pint of gravy; add a pound and a half of mutton, or of any meat, free from bone and fat, and simmer it gently for an hour, or more should it not then be perfectly tender.
Mary Randolph’s Curry of Catfish
— from The Virginia Housewife, or Methodical Cook, 1838
Take the white channel catfish, cut off their heads, skin and clean them, cut them in pieces four inches long, put as many as will be sufficient for a dish into a stew pan with a quarter of water, two onions, and chopped parsley; let them stew gently till the water is reduced to half a pint, take the fish out and lay them on to a dish, cover them to keep them hot, rub a spoonful of butter into one of flour, add a large teaspoonful of curry powder, thicken the gravy with it, shake it over the fire a few minutes, and pour it over the fish; be careful to have the gravy smooth.
Thanksgiving Turkey Curry
— adapted from Daniel Santiagoe’s recipe in
The Curry Cook’s Assistant and published in
the New York Times, 25 November 1887
one chicken or the remains of the Thanksgiving bird
1 teaspoon yellow curry powder
1 tablespoon liquid butter
1 pinch of cayenne
one pint milk
spices, cinnamon and cloves
salt to taste
one large onion
Take a good stewpan and put the onion sliced and all the other ingredients except for chicken and cream. Mix well, place on the fire for five minutes or more, and then add the chicken cut in joints, and let simmer for a few minutes. Soon as meat is done it is ready for table.
When serving add one tablespoon of cream and few drops of vinegar for flavor. More milk or clear gravy can be added if the pint of milk is not sufficient to tender the meat.
Bobotee
— from Hildagonda Duckitt Hilda’s ‘Where is it?’ of Recipes, 1897
2 pounds meat
2 onions
a large slice of white bread
1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of curry powder
a dessertspoon of sugar
juice of a lemon or 2 tablespoons of vinegar
6 or 8 almonds
lump of butter
Mince the meat, soak the bread in milk, and squeeze out dry. Fry the onions in a tablespoonful of butter (dripping will do). Mix all the ingredients – curry powder, sugar, salt, vinegar, etc., etc. – with the fried onion. Now mix all the meat and soaked bread. Mix one egg with the mixture, whisk the other with some milk, and pour over the whole, after being put into a buttered pie-dish or into little cups (the old Indian way), with a lemon or bay leaf stuck into each little cup. Put them in the oven to bake, and send to table in the cups or pie-dish. Serve with rice. (This dish is equally good made of cold mutton.)
Modern Recipes
Curried Goat, Trinidadian style
Ingredients
2 lbs / 900 g lean goat meat, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup / 200 g chopped onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
3 teaspoons green seasoning*
½ teaspoon chilli powder
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3–4 teaspoons Trinidadian curry powder
*Can be purchased at most food markets. To make one cup at home, take 3 tablespoons of chopped chives, 2 tablespoons each of parsley, thyme and shadow beni (or coriander leaves), 4 cloves of garlic and 2–3 tablespoons of water and grind in a food processor or blender until puréed.
Season the goat with the salt, onion, garlic, green seasoning and chilli powder. Heat the oil in a heavy pot. Mix the curry powder with 4 cups / 960 ml of water until it is a smooth paste, add to the hot oil and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the meat, coat with the paste and stir for around 10 minutes. Add 2 cups / 480 ml of hot water, bring to the boil, cover and simmer until the meat is tender.
Rendang Daging
(Beef Long-Cooked in Coconut Milk with Spices)
— from Sri Owen’s Indonesian Food (London, 2008)
Ingredients
6 shallots, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1 in. / 2.5 cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
1 in. / 2.5 cm piece of turmeric root, peeled and roughly chopped or 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
6–10 fresh red chillies, deseeded, or 3 teaspoons chilli powder
1 teaspoon chopped galangal, or ½ teaspoon laos powder (ground galangal)
4 pints / 2.3 litres coconut milk
1 salam leaf or bay leaf
1 fresh turmeric leaf or 1 lemon grass stem
2 teaspoon salt
3 lbs / 1350 g buffalo meat or beef (preferably brisket; otherwise chuck steak or silverside), cut into ¾ in. / 2 cm cubes
Put the shallots, garlic, ginger, turmeric, chillies and galangal or laos powder in a blender with 4 tablespoons of the coconut milk, and purée until smooth. Put this paste and the remaining coconut milk in a large wok or saucepan. (It is generally more convenient to start in a pan and transfer to a wok later.) Add the meat and the rest of the ingredients, making sure that there is enough coconut milk to cover.
Stir the contents of the pan and start cooking, uncovered, over a medium heat. Let the pan bubble gently for 1½ to 2 hours, stirring from time to time. The coconut milk will by then be quite thick and, of course, much reduced.
If you started in a large saucepan, transfer everything to a wok and continue cooking in the same way for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. By now the coconut milk will have begun to reduce to oil and the meat, which has so far been boiling, will soon be frying. From now on, the rending needs to be stirred frequently. Taste, and add salt if necessary. When the coconut milk becomes thick and brown, stir continuously for about 15 minutes until the oil has been more or less completely absorbed by the meat. Take out and discard the salam or bay leaf, turmeric leaf or lemon grass. Serve hot with plenty of rice.
Malaysian Nonya-style Chicken Curry
— from Tourism Malaysia, Flavours of Malaysia
Ingredients
4–5 tablespoons oil
1 star anise
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup meat curry powder,* mixed with enough water to form a paste
1 cup / 200 ml thick coconut milk
a 3 1b / 1350 g chicken, cut into pieces
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges
3 cups / 710 ml water
1 tablespoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
*for the Meat Curry Powder
1½ tablespoons each powdered coriander seed and cumin seed
¾ tablespoon powdered fennel seed
1 tablespoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon each of powdered cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom
Heat the oil over a medium-low heat and sauté the spices. Add the curry paste and stir for several minutes. Add 2–3 tablespoons of the coconut milk if necessary to keep it from sticking and fry over a low heat until the oil separates. Add the chicken and fry for a minute. Add the potatoes and the water. Simmer until the chicken is tender and the potatoes are cooked.
Add the thick coconut milk and season to taste. Continue to cook until the gravy is slightly thick.
Guyanese Chicken Curry
— courtesy of Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra
Ingredients
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
3–4 tablespoons Caribbean or Madras curry powder
2 tablespoons garam masala
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1–2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 lb / 450 g chicken breast, cut into small cubes
2 cups / 400 ml water or coconut milk
Grind the onion and garlic very finely in a small food processor. Mix the spice powders with enough water to make a paste, and let it stand for a while.
Heat the oil in a heavy pot. Sauté the onion paste until it has a slightly glassy appearance. Add the spice paste, stir until it starts to emit an aroma, then add the chicken and stir until it is well coated. When the mixture no longer appears glassy, pour in sufficient warm water or coconut milk to cover the chicken pieces. Cover and gently simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Serve with white rice or roti.
Frikkadels
— courtesy of Paul van Reyk
Of old Dutch origin, these spicy meatballs are popular in South Africa and are an essential ingredient in the Sri Lankan dish lamprais.
Ingredients
1 lb / 450 g minced lamb or beef
1 slice dried bread, grated
1 tablespoon shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 thin slices ginger, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fennel or dill leaves, finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground pepper
½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
½ lime, juiced
pinch of salt
2 eggs, well beaten in separate containers
breadcrumbs
Thoroughly mix the minced meat and all the ingredients except the second egg and the breadcrumbs together with your hands. Shape the mixture into balls the size of large marbles. Dip each ball in the remaining beaten egg and roll it in the breadcrumbs until crusted over. Deep-fry until golden-brown. A good way to know when to take them out is when the bubbles they release have reduced to a trickle.
Thai Mussamun Beef Curry
Ingredients
2 tablespoons oil
1½ teaspoons Mussamun curry paste
1 lb / 450 g stewing beef, cut into cubes
2 medium potatoes, cut into 1 in. / 2.5 cm cubes
1 onion, cut into four pieces
1½ cups coconut milk
1–2 tablespoons fish sauce, to taste
1 teaspoon sugar
1–5 chopped red chilli peppers, to taste
½ cup roasted peanuts
Heat the oil in a heavy pot or wok and sauté the curry paste until it bubbles. Add all the other ingredients except the peanuts, stir well, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour until the meat is tender. Sprinkle with the peanuts and serve with white rice.
Fijian Tinned Fish Curry
2 minced cloves of garlic
1 in. / 2.5 cm grated fresh ginger
½ teaspoon cumin seed
1 teaspoon mustard seed
1 medium onion, grated
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon tomato paste
16 oz/500g tinned tuna or mackerel
red chillies to taste
1 cup / 150 g frozen peas
1 teaspoon garam masala
Heat the oil from one of the tins of tuna and sauté the garlic, ginger, cumin and mustard seed until the mustard seed starts to pop. Add the onion and fry until soft. Add water or more oil if needed to prevent sticking. Add the turmeric and tomato paste and stir until it forms a paste. Add the fish, chillies, peas and garam masala and cook until heated through. Serve with roti or rice.