Black Pork Curry

Everything I read tells me that black curry is essential to Sri Lankan cuisine. I can believe that premise, but I have spent a lot of time trying to find an answer as to why that would be the case. Readers of this blog know of my love for curries generally and of Sri Lankan cuisine in particular. (Quick update for others: Sri Lanka basically curries everything.) 

There are a wide range of curry powders in Sri Lanka, but black curry seems to stand out.  It seems to be a uniquely Sri Lankan curry powder. (There is a "black curry" that arose in Japanese cuisine, but it is different than what I am talking about here - that will be saved for another post.) I have not been able to find a similar curry blend in any of the other subcontinent cuisines. 

It may be simply another way to describe roasted curry powder, which is definitely a Sri Lankan thing. I have a lot of roasted curry powder on hand and have used it to prepare roasted curry wings and an oyster curry.

For this recipe, I have prepared a black curry featuring pork. The curry mix combines roasted Sri Lankan curry powder with some other traditional ingredients, such as cardamom, cinnamon, and black pepper. The use of tamarind also helps to darken the color of the mixture, perhaps adding to the description of a black curry. The only substitution that I made was to add a roasted chile powder, which I had purchased from a Sri Lankan market a while back. That powder was also extra hot, which helped to reinforce the kick of this dish. 

In the end, this black pork curry was amazing. The only downside is that, while it serves four, I found myself eating a serving for two because it was so good. I will definitely need to make this dish more often. 

BLACK PORK CURRY

Recipe from The Flavor Bender

Serves 4

Ingredients (for the marinade):

• 4 teaspoons black pepper, whole
• 6 cardamom pod seeds, crushed
• 1 heaping teaspoon of Sri Lankan roasted curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 teaspoons tamarind paste

Ingredients (for the curry):

• 1.5 pounds pork loin chops or shoulder
• 2 jalapeno peppers, sliced (or serrano peppers) for more heat
• 1 inch of peeled ginger, minced
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Prepare the pork. Cut the pork into 1/2 to 1 inch cubes. If the pork has bones, add those to the curry as well. 

2. Prepare the masala. Crush the cardamom pods into a powder and mix it with the black pepper, curry powder, salt, cinnamon and cayenne pepper. Crush and mix all of this together using a mortar and pestle. Add 2 tablespoons of this spice mix, tamarind paste and 1 tablespoon of oil to the pork and mix to coat. Leave to marinate for a few hours or overnight in a refrigerator.

3. Prepare the curry. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the bay leaves, ginger and onions and sauté until the onions become translucent. Add the garlic and sliced jalapeno peppers and sauté for another 30 seconds. Add the marinated pork and sugar and stir t o mix well. Add about 1/2 cup of water and bring this to a boil. Lower the heat to medium low and let it simmer for 1 hour. Check on the curry and add extra water if it dries out.

4. Finish the dish. Taste and add more salt and some lemon juice if needed.

PEACE.

Ceylon Curry of Oysters

This recipe is a reminder that we have the British to blame for what is known as "curry." (I say that half-sarcastically, half-seriously.) The word "curry" is the anglicized version of kari, a word from the Tamil language for "sauce" or "relish for rice." The British used the word "curry" to describe basically every sauce and every relish for rice. They used the word not just for those dishes in India, but also for dishes made in a similar fashion across the British empire. 

The point is that, by lumping everything together as "curry," one takes away the individuality of the underlying dishes and the cuisines from which they originate. A "curry" from the subcontinent (such as from India or Sri Lanka) is different than a curry from Southeast Asia (such as from Thailand or Vietnam). Curries also differ significantly within countries, such as from Uttar Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in India or among the different ethnic minorities of Myanmar. 

Another aspect of westernization is apparent in the recipes themselves, in which the authors substitute more readily available ingredients for those used by the locals. This substitution was done perhaps out of necessity (as some ingredients were not available to western cooks) or a misunderstanding of the ingredients.

All of these thoughts are embodied in this recipe, Ceylon Curry of Oysters. The recipe originated with a person named Darmadasa, who worked at the East India Curry shop, which was located on East 57th Street in New York City. I used the past tense because both Darmadasa and the shop could be found on East 57th Street in the late 1930s, long before the emergence of Whole Foods, BLT Steak, or Mr. Chow. Darmadasa's recipe became public through a newspaper article written by Charlotte Hughes. Ms. Hughes declared that, "everybody in India, apparently, eats curry." She added that, while curries are difficult to make, "American cooks with pioneering spirits can master curry dishes." 

Hughes included some recipes with her article, including this oyster curry. Yet, as some have noted, her recipe had been Westernized, with substitutions of ingredients that would not have been used by Sri Lankan cooks. For instance, Hughes included "green pepper" in her recipe (most likely a reference to the bell pepper). However, the "green pepper" used by Sri Lankan cooks would have been more likely one of the more piquant varieties, such as a serrano pepper or a Thai (bird's eye) chile. She also called for the use of butter (in place of coconut oil), bay leaves (in place of curry leaves or pandan leaves) and "curry powder" (as opposed to identifying the various spices that would be included in making the masala).  

I made the Charlotte Hughes' Westernized version of Darmadasa's recipe. However, I added a few of my own changes to that recipe. The first change is a nod to the recipe's Sri Lankan roots. I substituted "curry powder" with roasted curry powder, which is, as far as I can tell, an ingredient that is unique to Sri Lankan curries. The second change goes to the method by which the oysters are "cooked" in the curry." The original recipe calls for the oysters to be placed in the curry and cooked for 3 to 4 minutes. That will cause the oysters to shrink and, depending upon the size of the oyster, may result in tough, chewy, little nuggets. I decided that I would add the oysters at the very end of the cooking process. By adding the oysters at this time, I rely upon the residual heat in the curry liquid. The oysters will not be completely raw, but they will also not be completely cooked. Such a result is fine given that oyster can be eaten raw.   

CEYLON CURRY OF OYSTERS

Recipe adapted from New York Times Cooking

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
• 4 small shallots, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 serrano chile or Thai chile, seeded and minced
• 1 tablespoon roasted curry powder
• 1 large pinch turmeric
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup coconut milk
• Salt
• 12 oysters, shucked, liquor reserved
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

Directions:

1.  Saute the shallots, garlic and chiles. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the shallots, garlic and chiles, and saute until softened and starting to brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the curry powder, turmeric, cinnamon stick, cloves and bay leaf. Cook for 1 minute. 

2. Saute the oysters. Reduce the heat to low and add the coconut milk and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Simmer for 3 minutes. Add the oyster and their liquor; simmer until the oysters are just firm, 3 to 4 minutes. Take the pan off heat and add the lemon juice and salt to taste. Serve over rice or on hoppers.

Roasted Curry Wings

In all of my years of cooking, including the more than ten years that I have been experimenting with various curries, I had never heard of roasted curry powder. Sure, I have seen and heard of a variety of curry powders. Those powders were just that - curry powders. The notion of a roasted curry powder seemed strange to me.

Yet, roasted curry powders play a feature role in Sri Lankan cuisine. It often serves as a fundamental component of a Sri Lankan curry. That is saying something for a cuisine that is known for currying anything and everything. Indeed, "rice and curry" is often known not just as the national dish of Sri Lanka, but it is also a phrase that could describe most of the dishes prepared in that country. 

This is why I love Sri Lankan cuisine. I am even preparing a personal culinary challenge to prepare a Sri Lankan dinner as part of my Around the World in 80 Dishes personal culinary challenge. It has taken a lot of time to prepare, partly because I am taking a substantial amount of effort to research the dishes; and, partly because I am a little intimidated. I have a lot of high expectations for a cuisine that I find truly fascinating and I want the end result to be as good as my expectations. (Any shortcoming will be due to my lack of experience as opposed to the cuisine itself.)

In any event, some very good friends and neighbors (one of whom is from Sri Lanka) know about my desire to prepare a dinner from the Pearl of the Indian Ocean (as the country is sometimes called). They provided me with a birthday gift consisting of a big bag of roasted curry powder. I have been working to incorporate that powder into my personal culinary challenge. However, in the meantime, I wanted to put it to a more immediate use. Nothing is more immediate for me than a chicken wing recipe.

I tried to find some history about how roasted curry powder came to be, but, any history of the powder seems difficult to find. Most leads simply led me to recipes using the powder (much like this one will become, see below). 

In any event, roasted curry powders are used in Sri Lankan cuisine to prepare darker curries. (If one was looking to prepare a lighter curry, one could simply use a regular curry powder.) I used it to prepare a dry rub for chicken wings. I decided to add some other dry ingredients, which together effectively make a regular curry powder. While those additional ingredients boosted the dry rub, the roasted elements of the roasted curry powder were still very present in both the aroma and taste of these wings. I can't wait to explore the use of roasted curry powder more when I finally complete my Sri Lankan challenge as part of the Around the World in 80 Dishes challenge. 

ROASTED CURRY WINGS

A Chef Bolek Original Recipe

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1 pound chicken wings
• 1 tablespoon roasted curry powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ginger powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground fenugreek powder
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 lemon juiced

Directions:

1. Prepare the marinade. Combine all of the powders in a small mixing bowl. Stir well until all powders are thoroughly mixed. Pour the coconut milk and lemon juice into a larger bowl. Stir the spice mix into the coconut milk mixture. Add the chicken wings and toss to coat. Let the wings marinate for at least an hour.

2. Grill the wings. Heat a gas grill or charcoal grill over medium high heat. Oil the grate. Add the wings and grill the wings for about 5 to 7 minutes before turning them. Grill for another 7 minutes or until the wings reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

ENJOY!