CHICKEN COUNTRY CAPTAIN

CHICKEN COUNTRY CAPTAIN 

This is an old Colonial Recipe that originated during the British Raj. It was served at all the Clubs and Army Messes in the middle 1900s. It goes well with any Rice such as Coriander Pilaf, Coconut Rice, Steamed White Rice, etc or with any Indian Bread or just Dinner Rolls. 

Serves 6   Time required: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 kg chicken cut into medium size pieces     

3 large onions sliced finely

2 teaspoons chillie powder                             

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 tablespoons oil                                            

Salt to taste

2 tablespoons garlic paste                              

2 sticks cinnamon

4 cloves                                                          

2 cardamoms

6 or 8 whole pepper corns                              

2 Dry Red Chillies broken into bits

Boil the chicken with sufficient water till almost cooked. Drain the stock and keep aside

Heat oil in a pan and fry the onions cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, dry red chillie and pepper corns lightly. Add the chicken, mix in the garlic paste and sauté for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Add the chillie powder, turmeric powder, and salt. Mix well and stir fry for a few minutes.

Add ½ cup of the chicken stock  and cook till the chicken is tender and the gravy is quite thick.

Serve as a curry with a simple corriander pilaf or cococnut Rice 

Ps. his recipe can be adapted to meat as well. Left over Beef or Lamb Roast can be made into a delicious County Captain Fry or a cold meat curry if desired.

HOME MADE CURRY POWDERS USED IN ANGLO-INDIAN COOKING

HOME MADE CURRY POWDERS USED IN ANGLO-INDIAN COOKING

 Here are a few recipes to make your own Homemade Curry Powders at home. Homemade powders always give a better taste to curries than store bought curry powders. Make small quantities and store in air tight bottles or jars for future use. These Curry Powders will save you a lot of time while cooking and your Curry, Pepper Water and Vindaloo will taste so different. 

 1. BASIC CHILLIE  POWDER

½ kg Red Chilies (long or round variety for pungency)

½ kg Kashmiri Chilies or any other non spicy chillies (for adding colour)

 Roast the two types of chilies in a pan or in a microwave oven for a few minutes. Powder them at home in the dry blender or get it done at the mill.

A teaspoon or two of this chillie powder could be used for any type of dish that calls for chillie powder. It can be stored for more than a year.

2. ANGLO-INDIAN CURRY POWDER

250 grams Red Chillies for pungency    

200 grams Kashmiri Chillies or any other chillies for colour

100 coriander seeds

100 grams cumin seeds

Roast all the above ingredients separately then mix altogether and grind to a fine powder either in a blender or mixer at home or get it ground in a mill.

A teaspoon or two of this powder can be used for almost all curries both vegetarian and non- vegetarian. It can be stored and used for more than a year.

3. PEPPER WATER POWDER

250 grams Red Chilies

50 grams pepper corns

50 grams cumin seeds

50  grams coriander seeds

20 grams turmeric powder

Roast all the above ingredients and then grind together to a powder.

2 teaspoons of this powder should be added to 2 cups of water, juice of 2 tomatoes, a lump of tamarind and a little salt and cooked for 5 minutes to make instant pepper water. This pepper water should be seasoned with mustard, garlic and curry leaves.

4.  VINDALOO CURRY POWDER / PASTE

25 grams mustard seeds

250 grams red chilies for pungency                                           

50 grams cumin seeds

10 grams pepper corns

Roast all the above ingredients together for a few minutes then powder in a mill or dry grind in a blender.

Use 2 teaspoons of this powder for every ½ kg of meat when cooking Vindaloo along with the other ingredients as per the recipe. If this powder is stored in an airtight bottle it will stay fresh for more than a year. The same mixture can also be made into a paste if ground in vinegar but it should be stored in the fridge. 

ANGLO-INDIAN RUMBLE TUMBLE or SCRAMBLED EGGS

ANGLO-INDIAN RUMBLE TUMBLE or SCRAMBLED EGGS

Rumble-Tumble is another name given for Eggs that are scrambled.

Scrambled eggs is a dish made from the whites and yolks of eggs that are stirred or beaten together,  then cooked gently in a pan that has been heated with a little butter or oil, with salt and  other ingredients. The beaten eggs are stirred frequently as they coagulate till just small bits are obtained. For savoury Rumble Tumble Eggs or Scrambled Eggs, chopped onions, green peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, bits of bacon or sausage, etc are first fried in the oil or butter then added to the beaten eggs, poured into the pan and scrambled. Here is a simple recipe for Scrambled / Rumble Tumble Eggs with Tomatoes. This recipe is also featured in my Cookery Book  SIMPLE EGG DELICACIES 

SCRAMBLED EGGS / RUMBLE TUMBLE EGGS WITH TOMATOES

Serves 4   Preparation Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

4 eggs beaten well

2 onions chopped finely

1 medium size tomato chopped finely

2 green chillies chopped

1 teaspoon chopped coriander leaves

100 grams butter or 3 tablespoons oil

Salt to taste

Heat the butter or oil in a pan and sauté the onions and green chillies till brown. Add the beaten eggs and salt and fry well mixing all the time so that the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pan. Mix in the tomatoes and continue cooking on low heat till the eggs are well scrambled. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves or chopped sprung onions