The Curry Cook's Assistant Part 6

By-the-bye, the fresh meat should be fried a little brown, because fresh meat devilled always tough unless the meat is undercut. Extra spoons of gravy should be added to devilled meats. Cuttings from cold joints are nice devilled; but fresh beef ought to be of tender part (as I said before, undercut). Fowl, duck, mutton, turkey, geese can be done in same way (I mean from joints roasted beforehand); but you must reduce or exceed the ingredients for the amount of weight. The quant.i.ties given for devilled biscuits are sufficient for 1 lb., or less of meat. Be careful not to burn.--See Devilled Biscuits.

No. 41.--MOLLAGOO TANNEY, AND NOT MULLIGATAWNY.[9]

[9] Why English people always spell this word wrong? Everybody knows this--Mollagoo, _pepper_; tanney, _water_. In proper Tamil the mollagoo tanney is p.r.o.nounced "Mollagoo Neer" and "Mollagoo Tannir."

2 Good Quarts of Gravy of Mutton Beef or Chicken Soup.

2 Large Spoons of Coriander Powder.

1 Tablespoon of Rice Powder as No. 48, and Pinch of Pepper.

1 Pint of good Milk.

2 Large Onions, sliced.

1 Piece of Ginger.

1 Garlic, small one.

1/2 Teaspoon of c.u.min Powder.

Pinch of Saffron.

1 Dessertspoon b.u.t.ter.

_Mode._--The Curry stuffs you use for mollagoo tanney should be very fine. Take a large stew-pan and mix all the above together, only one onion (sliced), garlic and ginger chopped up fine. Let these simmer for ten minutes, now strain it through a muslin or gravy strainer. Now fry the other onion in the dessertspoon of b.u.t.ter in another stew-pan. When the onions are browned add the mollagoo tanney with a small bay leaf, and skim off the grease, and send to table in a soup tureen as a soup; but this should be used instead of soup, or the first dish for a lunch or breakfast or dinner, but I recommend for dinner in Europe. Cut lemon should be handed round with the above and plain boiled rice. Fried red herring wouldn't be a bad accompaniment. In India the mullagatawny is used generally once a week--say on a Sunday or Wednesday. The natives usually have this mullagatawny on Fridays after their caste. Some mullagatawny are made of plain Curry stuffs, tamarind, etc., not worth for Europeans. Some parties who visited India like native mullagatawny better than the above, according to taste, but I recommend the above for Europeans. The cayenne pepper should be added if required hot.

No. 42.--PILLAU RICE (a Mohammedan Dish), au Joint for Dinner.

Cook rice as No. 50. Keep it aside till wanted, then place a frying-pan on fire. Have two large onions (sliced) and two tablespoons of b.u.t.ter, and add half-teaspoon of saffron. When all the above is nicely brown add the rice, and keep on turning for few minutes, sprinkle a little salt.

Now this is ready after dis.h.i.+ng the above. Fry a large onion (sliced), and raisins (fried), sliced almonds. Sprinkle the above three over the pillau rice. The pillau rice should accompany roast fowl or mutton chops by dis.h.i.+ng the meat on a flat dish, and cover it with pillau rice, and sprinkle over with fried onions, etc. Parsley mint can be fried and added. If it is to be eaten with Curry, use Madras Curry, kabob, or salmon, and omit the meat with pillau.

No. 43.--LEMON (HOT) SAUCE.

Juice of a Large Lemon.

1 Dessertspoon Cayenne.

1 Dessertspoon Pounded White Sugar; some Salt.

Mix all together in a cup and use. If required to be kept, boil the whole in an enamel-plated saucepan; when cold bottle it. This sauce is very nice with cold meat or with made dishes.

No. 44.--APPLE CHUTNEY.

How to make in England.

1/2 lb. Sour Apples, peeled and cored.

1/4 lb. Currants.

1 oz. Chillies (or 1/2 oz. Cayenne).

1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar.

4 oz. Salt, or to taste.

1 Eggspoon Pepper, finely ground.

1 oz. Garlic, chopped up fine.

1/4 oz. Green Ginger, chopped up fine.

1/4 lb. Raisins.

_Mode._--Have the currants and raisins clean, and pound them in grinder or pounder of stone. Now grind the apples and all other ingredients to a smooth paste (I mean, not too thin or in lumps). Now mix these well together with half bottle of best vinegar, and bottle it in tart fruit bottles, corked well. If you require sweeter have more sugar, and if it is too watery put in a little less of vinegar. The above plan of chutney is suitable for cold meats, Curries, etc. In Ceylon, Mango Chutney is made in similar way, but they use tamarind, and when grinding use vinegar to soften the ingredients when grinding.

No. 44a.--MINT CHUTNEY.

1/2 lb. Mint.

1 oz. Cayenne.

1/4 lb. Salt.

1/4 lb. Raisins.

2 oz. Ginger.

1/4 lb. Brown Sugar.

1 oz. Garlic.

1/2 Bottle Vinegar to grind the above.

1/2 Bottle Vinegar, hot, to pour over.

_Mode._--Grind or pound the above by adding the cold vinegar by degrees to soften. When nice and smooth, put into a bowl and pour over the hot vinegar. When cool, bottle it in tart fruit bottles, and cork well.

N.B.--I can give dozens of recipes for chutney. I am afraid it is no use telling in this book, because the ingredients cannot be procured fresh, as mangoes, pineapples, lavi-lavi, blinga, tamarind, ripe chillies, chutnies, etc., etc. The above is a recipe I tried in Newera Eliya, Ceylon, where fresh mint can be had in any quant.i.ty of first cla.s.s, same as in England and Scotland.

No. 45.--QUICKLY-MADE SAMBALL.

How to make it in England.

Chop up fine one large onion, a teaspoon of cayenne, another of crushed sugar, one tablespoon finely-chopped ham (cooked), one teaspoon salt, one tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice.

_Mode._--Mix all the above in a small bowl with a wooden spoon or with your clean finger. Now add the vinegar. Again mix well, and send to table with cold pork, Curries, etc. A little more sugar may be added if preferred sweet. There are great many samb.a.l.l.s can be made, but all must pa.s.s the Curry stone or stone-made pounder. The samb.a.l.l.s made of dry chillies, green chillies, cocoanut juice, Maldive fish, onions, cooked fishes, meats, mint, etc., etc. The samb.a.l.l.s are a great improvement to Curries. In Ceylon every cook would send a samball to table with the Curry and rice; also native meals are never without a samball--especially _samball_, or some ball. It is only a new-made chutney or pickle, but _fresh_ made, called _sampball_.

No. 46.--HOW TO FRY RED HERRINGS FOR CURRIES.