Take a pair of fine fowls, and having cut them in pieces, lay them
in salt and water till the seasoning is ready. Take two table-spoonfuls
of powdered ginger, one table-spoonful of fresh
turmeric, a tea-spoonful of ground black pepper; some mace, a few
cloves, some cardamom seeds, and a little cayenne pepper with a
small portion of salt. These last articles according to your
taste. Put all into a mortar, and add to them eight large onions,
chopped or cut small. Mix and beat all together, till the onions,
spices, &c. form a paste.
Put the chickens into a pan with sufficient butter rolled in
flour, and fry them till they are brown, but not till quite done.
While this is proceeding, set over the fire a sauce-pan three
parts full of water, or sufficient to cover the chickens when they
are ready. As soon as the water boils, throw in the curry-paste.
When the paste has all dissolved, and is thoroughly mixed with the
water, put in the pieces of chicken to boil, or rather to simmer.
When the chicken is quite done, put it into a large dish, and eat
it with boiled rice. The rice may either be laid round on the same
dish, or served up separately.
This is a genuine East India receipt for curry.
Lamb, veal, or rabbits may be curried in the same manner.
_To boil Rice for the Curry._
Pick the rice carefully, to clear it from husks and motes. Then
soak it in cold water for a quarter of an hour, or more. When you
are ready to boil it, pour off the water in which it has soaked.
Have ready a pot or sauce-pan of boiling water, into which you
have put a little salt. Allow two quarts of water to a pound of
rice. Sprinkle the rice gradually into the water. Boil it hard for
twenty minutes, then take it off the fire, and pour off all the
water that remains. Set the pot in the chimney corner with the lid
off, while dinner is dishing, that it may have time to dry. You
may toss it up lightly with two forks, to separate the grains
while it is drying, but do not stir it with a spoon.