Kedgeree

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Kedgeree

Kedgeree (or occasionally kitcherie, kitchari or kitchiri) is a dish consisting of flaked fish (usually smoked haddock), boiled rice, eggs and butter. According to some sources, the dish originated from Scotland and was taken to India by Scottish troops during the British Raj, where it was adapted and adopted as part of Indian cuisine.[1] The dish then returned to the wider UK having been popular amongst the British colonials in India hence was introduced to the United Kingdom as a breakfast dish in Victorian times, part of the then fashionable Anglo-Indian cuisine.[2] Though the National Trust for Scotland's book The Scottish Kitchen by Christopher Trotter has traced the origins for the kedgeree recipe to books by the Malcolms dating back to the year 1790, the general opinion is that it was adapted from the Indian food Khichdi which has its roots in ancient Indian writings as a comfort food.

During the Raj, fish was often served for colonial breakfasts so that fish caught in the early morning could be eaten while it was still fresh. Kedgeree is rarely eaten for breakfast now, but is still a popular dish.

Most recipes now contain curry powder (or just turmeric) and coriander leaves (cilantro). Sometimes cream or yogurt are stirred into the rice after cooking to make the dish richer. Early recipes however do not usually have these more recent innovations, using parsley instead.

The name is derived from an Indian dish (khichdi in Hindi; also known as pongal in Tamil) made from rice, lentils, onions and spices. Vegetarian and vegan versions of kedgeree exist, based far more closely on the original khichdi recipes using rice and either masoor dal (red lentils) or moong dal (green lentils).

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ "Recipe for kedgeree". Scottishrecipes.co.uk. 2007-06-06. http://www.scottishrecipes.co.uk/kedgeree.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-12. 
  2. ^ Smith, Delia. "Buttery Kedgeree". Delia Smith’s Complete Cookery Course. http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/buttery-kedgeree,1284,RC.html. Retrieved on 2008-03-10. 

[edit] References

  • Curries and Bugles, A Memoir and Cookbook of the British Raj, Jennifer Brennan ISBN 962-593-818-4

[edit] External links

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