Memories of the Raj

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During the days of the Raj, the Indian cooks or khansamas had to cater to the tastes of the sahibs and memsahibs whose standards were very exacting. The desi cooks always managed to impress the higher ups with typical Indian ingredients.

We look at two recipes that have come to India thanks to the taste buds of the servants of the East India Company and their insistence that wherever they were, one could not let standards slip.

Dak Bungalow Chicken Roast
The British loved their roasts but unfortunately the cooks did not have the right ingredients and had to make do with Indian masalas. The results were so good that soon the sahibs wanted the new stuff instead of the original.

Ingredients
1 kg whole chicken, with skin
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
½ tsp garam masala powder
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
Paste of 2 green chillies
½ tsp turmeric
¼ cup yoghurt
3 tbsp oil

Method
Prick the chicken all over and rub the salt and lemon juice into the skin.
In a bowl, mix the ginger-garlic paste, green chilli paste, turmeric, yoghurt and garam masala and rub all over the chicken. Marinate for 4 hours.
Preheat the oven to 190°C.
Heat the oil in a pan large enough to hold the chicken. Lift the chicken from the marinade, reserving leftover marinade and fry it on all sides till browned.
Bake for 15 minutes loosely covered with foil. Spoon the rest of the marinade over the chicken and baste. Cook for another 15 minutes with foil off for the last five minutes.
Remove from oven and let the bird rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Rose Custard
This is like a normal custard, extremely simple to make, something the camp cook could whip up in a jiffy.

Ingredients
500 ml milk
4 tbsp sugar
3 whole eggs plus the yolks of 3 more eggs, beaten
½ tsp rose-water
1 tbsp flaked almonds
A few rose petals

Method
Preheat the oven to 150°C.
With a hand mixture, blend the milk and sugar and slowly incorporate the eggs including the extra yolks. Add the rose-water.
Pour into a custard dish, like one would use for a caramel custard and bake for one hour.
Remove from the oven and set aside till it cools down. Sprinkle with almonds and rose petals and serve hot. This can also be served cold.