 Country captain | |
| Type | Curry |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Indian subcontinent |
| Main ingredients | chicken,onions,curry powder; usuallygolden raisins andalmonds |
Country captain is acurried chicken dish, often served with rice, popular in theSouthern United States. It was introduced to the United States throughCharleston,Savannah,New York City, andPhiladelphia, but has origins inAnglo-Indian cuisine from the time of theBritish Raj in India. The dish was included in theU.S. military'sMeal, Ready-to-Eat packs from 2000 to 2004, in honor of its being a favorite ofGeorge S. Patton.
It has appeared on television shows in both the United States and in the United Kingdom, with chefsBobby Flay,Atul Kochhar andCyrus Todiwala all cooking the dish. Todiwala served his version to QueenElizabeth II as part of herDiamond Jubilee celebrations.
Country captain originated inAnglo-Indian cuisine during theBritish Raj in India as a simplespatchcock poultry or game recipe involving onions andcurry and possibly enjoyed by British officers.[1][2] Henrietta Hervey, in her 1895 bookAnglo-Indian Cooking at Home, gave a recipe for the Anglo-Indian dish for a British audience back in England.[3]
One theory is that an early 19th-century British sea captain, possibly from theEast India Company,[4] working in the spice trade introduced it to the American South via the port of Savannah. The dish remains popular amongst the communities inMumbai, India.[1] The "country" part of the dish's name dates from when the term referred to things of Indian origin instead of British, and so the term "country captain" would have meant a captain of Indian origin, a trader along the coasts of India.[2] Others claim that the word "captain" in the title is simply a corruption of the word "capon".[5]
In 1991,The New York Times columnistMolly O'Neill researched the origin of the dish,[6] which had been a steady feature in southern cookbooks since the 1950s. Working withCecily Brownstone, they discovered that the dish originally published in the United States in the pages ofMiss Leslie’s New Cookery Book published in Philadelphia in 1857.[7] The recipe required a "fine full-grown fowl".[8] It also appeared in the kitchens ofAlessandro Filippini, who was a chef with a restaurant onWall Street in the 19th century.[7]
Fans of the dish have includedFranklin D. Roosevelt, who encountered country captain while visiting theLittle White House inWarm Springs, Georgia.[9] Roosevelt introduced it toGeorge S. Patton, and it was Patton's love for the dish which subsequently resulted in it being added in his honor to theU.S. Army'sMeal, Ready-to-Eatfield rations in 2000.[7] A variety of Southern chefs have recipes for the dish, includingPaul Prudhomme,[10]Paula Deen andEmeril Lagasse.[11][12] The dish was featured on an episode ofThrowdown! with Bobby Flay inseason 6 guest-starring Matt and Ted Lee.[13] It appeared on theBBC One cooking show,Saturday Kitchen, with chefAtul Kochhar cooking the regular chicken and rice version of the dish.[14]
In its basic form, country captain is a mild stew made with brownedchicken pieces,onions, andcurry powder.[14]Almonds andgolden raisins orzante currants are usually added.[11] Many versions also call fortomatoes,garlic, andbell peppers.[15] The dish is served overwhite rice.[14] With the exception of the rice, it is meant to be cooked all in the same pot.[11] Chef Mamrej Khan has referred to the dish as one of the firstfusion dishes to be developed, making it part of theAnglo-Indian cuisine.[1]
ChefCyrus Todiwala cooked a variation of country captain onSaturday Kitchen. His version was similar toshepherd's pie, in that the meat was baked under a layer of potato.[16] He had previously cooked the dish for QueenElizabeth II and theDuke of Edinburgh atKrishna Avanti Primary School inHarrow as part of the Queen'sDiamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012. That version of the dish useda rare breed of lamb from theOrkney Islands which had been fed on seaweed.[17] The dish is also now on the menu of Todiwala's London restaurant,Café Spice Namasté.[18]
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