Just Indian Recipes

Recipes for Some Indian Chutneys

2012-01-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

Apple Chutney Recipe

1/2 lb. Sour Apples, peeled and cored.
1/4 lb. Currants.
1 oz. Chillies (or ½ 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.

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.

Mint Chutney Recipe

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.

Orange Marmalade

2009-02-04T11:58:00.001-08:00

This marmalade can be made from oranges or lemons or grapefruit, or by combining the three, or by combining any two of them.

Either slice the fruit very thinly or run it through a meat grinder. For every cup of fruit take three cups of water. Let it stand for twenty-four hours. Then boil it in the same water until the rinds are soft. Let stand another twenty-four hours in the same water. Then measure again and for every cup of mixture take a cup of sugar. The best results are obtained if not over four cupfuls are boiled at a time. Boil rapidly. If citrus fruits are boiled slowly they are apt to grow dark and strong. If oranges are used alone for this marmalade they must be sour. A good combination is four oranges, two lemons, and half a grapefruit.

Koorma

2008-08-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

Koorma is usually made from mutton or veal. Mince an onion, a little green ginger, and a tiny bit of garlic and add to a cup of buttermilk. Cover a pound of mutton with this and allow to stand for a while. The mutton may either be fresh or left-over. While the mixture is standing, fry a minced onion; add to it a little turmeric. Turn the buttermilk mixture into this. If the meat is uncooked, also add a little water, so that it may become tender; but this is unnecessary if cold mutton is used. Simmer slowly together until the meat gets tender and the curds dry. At the last a little cocoanut may be added, but this is not necessary. The gravy must be very little and very rich.

Buffath, or Curry with Vegetables

2008-08-20T05:29:00.000-07:00

Fry one-half pound of meat, finely diced, with onion and curry powder. Add a little water from time to time, so that the meat will be tender and the onions soft. Then add two teacupfuls of water. As soon as water boils add a cupful of sliced radishes, potatoes, carrots, or any vegetables that will not mash. Cook slowly together until vegetables are soft. In India this curry is always acidulated, but that is not necessary. It is a good plan, however, to always serve sliced lemon with all curries, as some prefer them sour.

Just Indian Recipes: Carrot Pickle

2008-08-19T19:29:00.001-07:00

Cut the carrots any way that is desired. If they are very small they need not be cut at all. Sprinkle them well with salt and dry them in the sun for three days, being careful not to forget to bring them in at night. For a pound of carrots take a tablespoonful of mustard seed, half a dozen peppers (sliced), two tablespoonfuls of green ginger (sliced), and two garlics (finely-minced). Cover with vinegar. These are excellent.

Armenian Kidgeri.

2008-08-15T05:45:00.000-07:00

Soak a cup of split peas for several hours, then fry with two thinly-sliced onions and a cup of rice. When slightly brown, cover with water and boil. The water should be three inches above the peas and rice; also add a little bag of mixed spices. Fry some meat in a separate pan. It may be either beefsteak, Hamburg, or mutton. When rice and peas are soft, place a layer of meat in a dish and cover with a layer of the rice and peas. Repeat until all are used, being careful to have the rice and peas on top. Steam together and serve with coconut and fried onions sprinkled over the top.

Just Indian Recipes: Jellabies (Best Beloved)

2008-08-13T04:48:00.001-07:00

Make a batter of one pound of flour and water. Make it just about as thick as you would for pancakes. Cover the vessel tightly and let stand for three days. Then stir in about a half a cup of thick sour milk. Pour a little of this batter into a vessel with a hole in the bottom. In India a cup made from half a coconut shell is made for this purpose, one of the eyes in the monkey face at the end being perforated. Fill this cup with batter and let the batter run through a little at a time into a pan of boiling fat. While the batter is running out through the hole keep the hand moving in a circle, so that the jellabies will take the form of pretzels. Fry as you would doughnuts.

In the meantime have a dish of syrup ready. Make this syrup from a pound of brown sugar and water. Cook it until it is about as thick as maple syrup. Keep this syrup in a warm place and as the jellabies fry place each one for a few minutes in the syrup. Remove and pile them on oiled paper until needed. These are sure to make a hit. Be sure and fry them until they are quite brown. If one doesn't want to bother with the batter standing around for three days, they can be made up at once by adding a teaspoonful of baking powder to the mixture and beating it well. The milk must not be too sour in that case.

Fried Rice (Parsi)

2008-08-11T15:02:00.000-07:00

Fry a cup of uncooked rice and a cup of brown sugar in a tablespoonful of butter or crisco. Cook until the sugar melts and begins to bubble; then quickly add two cups of boiling water. Simmer over a slow fire, or, better still, in a rice boiler until rice is thoroughly cooked. It can hardly be cooked too much. Remove from the fire, pour over all a half ounce of rose water and stir well. Press in plates and sprinkle well with minced almonds, or any kind of nuts will do. Also add a few cardamon seeds. When cold, cut into squares and serve like fudge. This is a very satisfactory little sweetmeat when one wants a foreign dish. It is easily prepared and very inexpensive.

Banana Stew with Cocoanut

2008-08-10T04:33:00.000-07:00

Boil six bananas. To boil bananas do not remove the skins. Just pour enough boiling water over them to cover them. Add a little salt to the water. As soon as the skins crack they are done. Remove and cool. When cool, take off the skins, scrape the bananas a little and split them.

Make a syrup of one cup of sugar and half a cup of fresh cocoanut and half a cup of water. Pour this over the boiled bananas and serve. This dish is much appreciated by the children.

Puff Paste

2008-08-10T04:30:00.000-07:00

Make a dough out of a pound of flour and sufficient water. Knead for fifteen minutes. Roll in a damp cloth and set aside.

After an hour or so knead again. Then add a spoonful of shortening at a time until the dough begins to crack and looks rough.

Roll out in a sheet, cut in four pieces, place one upon the other, roll again, cut in four pieces again. Repeat this four times, then roll it into a sheet, spread it with shortening of some kind, cut in four pieces, and place one over the other. Then roll for the last time. The advantage of this method is that it takes comparatively little shortening and is always light and flaky. It makes a delicious pastry for cheese cakes.

Mixed Vegetable Pickle

2008-08-09T17:51:00.001-07:00

Eggplant, radishes, onions, carrots, peppers, all are largely used in making pickles in India. They are chopped, sprinkled with salt, and dried for several days in the hot sunshine. Mustard seed, turmeric, and minced garlic are usually added. After several days of sunning they are bottled, covered with vinegar which has been boiled, but which has been cooled.

Apple Chutney

2008-08-09T05:24:00.001-07:00

Boil together three pounds of sliced apples, two pounds of sugar, and a quart of strong vinegar. When this begins to get like jam, add half a pound of raisins, four teaspoonfuls of finely-minced garlic, two tablespoonfuls of thinly-sliced green ginger, one teaspoonful of red pepper, and one ounce of mustard seed. Let simmer a while, then bottle and expose to the sun. Apricot chutney is delicious made the same way, with the addition of several ounces of apricot pits, blanched and minced

Potato Puris

2008-08-08T04:21:00.000-07:00

Equal parts of mashed potatoes and flour, mixed to a paste and rolled very thin. Make each puri about as large as a saucer. Fry as you would fritters. These sound rather expensive, and they do take a good deal of fat; but they are to be eaten without butter. Eat with curry. Nothing else will be needed at a meal where these puris and curry are served, for they are very satisfying.

Hulwa

2008-08-07T17:50:00.001-07:00

Fry a cupful of cream of wheat in half a cup of butter or crisco. When it begins to have a nutty flavor and to be slightly brown, add three cups of water and one cup of sugar and a few of the small inside seeds of the cardamon. Boil slowly until it forms a thick rich paste. Press into square cake pans and sprinkle over the top minced nuts and also raisins, if desired. Cut in squares like fudge. Very good and wholesome.

Lemon Chutney

2008-08-07T17:48:00.003-07:00

Cut a pound of lemons in twelve bits each, and cook in vinegar and a very little salt until the rinds are perfectly tender. Drain.

Dissolve a pound of sugar in a quart of vinegar; put in the lemons and cook until the mixture becomes thick like jam. Then add a teaspoonful of cayenne pepper (or less), two tablespoonfuls of minced ginger, two tablespoonfuls of mustard seed, and a pound of raisins. Mix all together and boil ten minutes longer

Kausaundi Pickle (Americanized)

2008-08-07T17:48:00.001-07:00

This is a very sour pickle. In India it is always made with sliced green mango, but in this country very sour green apples and lemons do very nicely.

Slice thinly four lemons. Sprinkle well with salt. Cover with vinegar, and let stand for about a month.

Slice thinly four very tart apples, two onions, six large sour cucumber pickles, and three large red peppers. After they are sliced mix intimately, then add two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard seed, a little salt, and, if the peppers are mild, a little cayenne pepper; also add two tablespoonfuls of thinly-sliced green ginger and one tablespoonful of finely-minced garlic.

Drain the salt and vinegar from the lemons and add them to the rest of the mixture.

Roast two tablespoonfuls of turmeric until the raw taste is taken away, then mix with it two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard; add to this a cup of salad and a cup of vinegar. Mix well together and pour over the pickles. If there is not enough oil and vinegar to cover it, add equal parts of each until the pickle is well covered.

This pickle is not to be cooked, but it is best to let it stand in the sun for a number of days. If there is no sun, the warming oven would do. It keeps indefinitely, and is very appetizing. It is fine for sandwiches. A little in Spanish steak or curry adds much to the flavor.

Chupatties (Americanized)

2008-08-07T17:47:00.001-07:00

Make a dough from a pound of whole wheat flour, a half teaspoonful of baking powder, and a little salt. Knead well and let stand. When ready to bake them, divide into balls as big as a walnut. Roll each out, spread a little oil or crisco over it; fold up and roll again. Grease an iron griddle and bake, turning from side to side. These are not actually fried, but the crisco in them and the greased griddle prevents them from getting hard, as they are apt to do if made according to Chupatties recipe above.

Chupatties

2008-08-07T17:46:00.003-07:00

Take a pound of whole wheat and mix it with water until a soft dough is formed. Knead this well. Put a damp cloth over it, and let it stand an hour or so. Then knead again. Make out into balls, each ball about as big as a walnut. Then roll each ball into a flat cake about as big around as a saucer. Bake these cakes one at a time over a very thick iron griddle that has been well heated. Keep turning them over and over while they are baking. Fold them up in a napkin as they are baked and keep in a warm place. The inside pan of a double boiler is a good place for them. To be properly made[59] these cakes should be patted into shape instead of rolled, and the Hindustani women always do it that way. These chupatties are eaten with bujeas and curries.

Banana Bujea

2008-08-07T17:46:00.001-07:00

Take half a dozen not too ripe bananas, cut them in pieces, and allow them to lie in weak salt water for a while. Slice two green mango peppers and half an inch of green ginger; also cut in tiny bits a clove of garlic. Brown a sliced onion in butter or crisco. Then add the bananas, peppers, etc. When the fruit softens stir in half a cup of cocoanut; any unsweetened kind will do. Cook a few minutes longer.

Potato Bujea

2008-08-07T17:45:00.002-07:00

To a pound of potatoes take two medium sized onions and one green mango pepper. If the pepper cannot be had, use the tops of onions and a little cayenne. Fry the onions, and when nicely browned add the potatoes and peppers. If potatoes are medium-sized, cut each potato in four pieces. Add four tablespoonfuls of water and if hot food is liked, a good sprinkle of cayenne. If more water is[55] needed, add a couple of tablespoonfuls more. Cook very slowly. Use plenty of oil or crisco in frying the onions. This is good with old potatoes, but is best with new ones. Tiny new potatoes are fine cooked in this way. They do not need to be scraped. Just washed thoroughly and cooked whole.

Beef or Mutton Pullao

2008-08-07T17:45:00.001-07:00

Very delicious pullao may be made from the cheapest cuts of beef and mutton. Get about two pounds of beef or mutton, cut in bits. Cook until it is very tender. Boil with this a little bag of mixed spices and two onions. Unless the meat has a good deal of fat, use crisco, or oil. Two cups of rice will be the right amount to use with two pounds of meat. Use the same method that is used in making chicken pullao. Fresh cocoanut is always delicious strewn over pullao, and if curry is used with it, have cocoanut in the curry.

Pullao

2008-08-07T17:44:00.002-07:00

Pullao is the most festive dish in India. It stands for all that roast turkey does in this country. At weddings, feasts, and holidays it is the chief dish. Among the Hindustani Christians it is the Christmas dinner. Sometimes it is served with rivers of hot curry flowing over it, but often it is eaten without the curry. In India it is usually made with chicken, but any kind of meat does nicely.

For chicken pullao, take a good fat hen, not too old, cut up and stew until almost tender. Put a little bag of "mixed spices," such as are used in making pickles, on to cook with the fowl. While the fowl is cooking take about a pound of rice and fry it with a few sliced onions and a little butter or crisco. When the chicken is nearly done, add the fried rice and onions to the chicken and chicken broth. Put all in a rice boiler if you have it and cook slowly until the rice is done. Retain the spices. If rice boiler is used there should be at least two inches of broth above the mixture. If you have no rice boiler, but must boil it on the stove, more broth will be required. In the latter case do not cook until it becomes soggy. Cook until the broth is absorbed, then steam.

While the rice is cooking fry a few more onions with a handful of almonds and raisins. When the pullao is ready to be served, pile on a platter, then strew thickly over the pullao the fried onions, almonds, and raisins. Last of all, sprinkle generously with cocoanut.

Plain Boiled Rice

2008-08-07T17:44:00.001-07:00

For every cup of rice have about eight cups of water. Do not add the rice until the water is boiling briskly. Then throw in the rice, and give it an occasional stir until the water begins to boil again. After that it need not be stirred.

Cook until a grain feels soft when rubbed between the thumb and finger, then turn into a colander. Drain off the water and pour over the rice several cups of cold water. Drain that off, too, and place the rice where it can have moist heat for a while before serving. A good plan is just to leave it in the colander and place it over a pan of boiling water; or a steamer may be used for keeping it warm, or a double-boiler. By this method every grain is separate. Rice served with curry is always prepared in this way. It may be served in place of potatoes with meat, and may also be used as a basis for many inexpensive and attractive dishes, just as macaroni and spaghetti are.

There is one objection, however, to rice prepared in this way. A good deal of the nutritive value is lost down the sink-drain. In India this is not the case, for every ounce of rice water is there carefully saved. It is used in various ways. Usually it is fed to the babies and weaker children. Often it is given to ducks and fowl to fatten them, and sometimes it is put into the curry pot.

There is another method of preparing rice which is almost as satisfactory, and by which all the nutrition is retained. That is by cooking it in a regular rice boiler. Put just enough water over the rice to well cover it. After the water in the lower vessel has boiled a while, if the rice seems a little dry, add more water. Cook until the rice is soft, then turn the fire very low, so that the water in the lower vessel does not boil but retains its heat. Let stand for a while before serving, and the rice will be almost as fluffy and white as though blanched by the cold water process.

Kidgeri

2008-08-07T17:43:00.002-07:00

First soak a cup of split peas for about three hours. Then put them on to stew with two whole onions. When about half done add a cup of rice. The water must be about two inches above the split peas and rice. Cook until rice and peas are soft and the water is absorbed. Pour over all some melted butter or crisco. Usually kidgeri is served with poached eggs. Sometimes eggs are hard-boiled and sliced over the kidgeri after it is dished.

Split Pea Soup

2008-08-07T17:43:00.001-07:00

Soak a cup of peas over night and boil in three cups of water. Cook until peas are soft, then mash them quite smoothly. Then dilute with stock. This stock may be made from bones and cold meat or fresh meat. Fry an onion and add to the soup, and when ready to serve add minced mint leaves and little squares of toast, fried very crisp

Massala Fry

2008-08-07T17:42:00.002-07:00

This is not really a curry, but is an excellent way of preparing tough round steak.

Mix two teaspoonfuls of curry powder into a half cup of flour, and pound by means of a saucer into a pound of round steak. Fry the steak with a sliced onion until quite brown. Then add a little water and simmer until the meat is tender. The gravy should be little and rich. Do not cut the meat. This is a fine casserole dish

Meat and Split Pea Curry

2008-08-07T17:42:00.001-07:00

Cut a half pound of beef or mutton into small bits and fry as usual with onions and curry powder. When nicely browned add a cup of split peas which have been soaking for several hours. Simmer all together in plenty of water until the meat and peas are tender. Serve with rice.

Meat Curry with Cabbage

2008-08-07T17:41:00.000-07:00

Half a pound of meat is plenty for this very hearty and inexpensive dish.

Fry the onion, curry powder, and meat together in the usual way. When nicely browned, add several cups of thinly-shredded or sliced cabbage. Cover with water and simmer slowly until all are tender. Just before serving acidulate. In India, tamarind juice is always used for this purpose, but lemon or lime does very nicely. Carrots or turnips may be used the same way and are excellent. Eat with or without rice. Usually this curry is eaten with chupatties

Meat Curry with Pastry

2008-08-07T17:39:00.005-07:00

Prepare the curry as in the Curry Powder recipe, adding the dumplings after the meat is tender. For the dumplings, mix half a cup of flour into a stiff dough with water. Add a little salt, and roll out very thin. Cut in two-inch squares. Some like a little fresh cocoanut and cocoanut milk added to this curry.

Curry with Curds

2008-08-07T17:39:00.003-07:00

This curry is prepared a little differently. Place in a deep dish one pound of beef or mutton or any kind of meat. Cover with thick curds of milk. These curds should not be too sour. Also add a green mango pepper thinly sliced, and if desired a clove of garlic, finely minced. Let stand in the curds for a couple of hours. In the meantime fry an onion and two teaspoonfuls of curry powder together. When nicely browned add the curd mixture. Cook over a slow fire until meat is tender. Cold sliced meat is very good prepared this way. In this case cook the onions thoroughly before adding the curd mixture. The meat should be cut in small pieces.

Chicken Curry

2008-08-07T17:39:00.001-07:00

Cut a chicken up any way you like and fry it with one thinly-sliced onion and the curry powder. The amount of curry powder will of course depend on the size of the chicken. Fry together until the chicken is nicely browned, then add water and simmer until chicken is tender. Remember always to reduce the gravy by slow cooking until it is somewhat thickened by the onion pulp. A couple of sliced tomatoes fried with the chicken, onion, and curry powder is much liked by some—not only in chicken curry, but in all curries.

Beef Curry

2008-08-07T17:36:00.002-07:00

Cut a pound of fresh beef into bits. Any cheap cut does well for this. Slice an onion very thinly, and fry together in a dessert-spoonful of fat of any kind, the meat, onion, and two teaspoonfuls of curry powder. When they are nicely browned add several cups of water and simmer gently until the meat is very tender and the onion has become a pulp, thereby thickening the curry gravy. This requires long, slow cooking. More water may be added from time to time. If one has a fireless cooker, it should always be used in curry making. Serve with rice prepared according to taste. In India, curry and rice are always served in separate dishes. The rice is served first and the curry taken out and put over it. Usually chutney is eaten with curry and rice.

Curry Powder

2008-08-07T17:36:00.001-07:00

10 ounces of coriander seed;
1 teaspoon of caraway seed;
1 teaspoon of black pepper;
1 teaspoon of red pepper;
6 teaspoons of turmeric;
4 tablespoons of flour;
1 teaspoon of cloves;
4 teaspoons of cinnamon;
Seeds of six cardamons.