Curry to Britain
Curry’s fame began to spread to Britain. Some of the Company’s men took their servants back to their homeland. Some Lascars (Indian sailors) who sailed to London also stayed there. They made curries or sold curry powders.
Indian Immigrants Brought Curries to Britain
from: "Map indicating locations of United Kingdom and India." Wikipedia.
" 'Ringa Swamee, what is your history?'
'Sahib,' he replied, 'I was born in Madras… I was happy in Benares till I hired myself to a sahib (a British master), who brought me to England fifteen years ago, and he died and left me helpless.' "
- From The Asiatic in England (1873) written by a British missionary Joseph Salter (1816-1901)
"One (lascar, or Indian sailor in London) vended curry-powder to gentlefolks in the suburbs…"
- From The East in the West (1895) written by Salter
Lascars in London
from: Lemmerman, Mick. "The Lascars." Isle of Dogs.
The first curry recipe was published in Britain in 1747. The first Hindostanee Coffee House that served ‘original’ Indian curries opened in London in 1811. Retired East India Company officials served curries to their guests in their banquets.
Sake Dean Mahomed, Founder of Hindoostane Coffee House (left) & Its Site (right)
from: Paterson, Mike. "The Hindoostane Coffee House." London Historians’ Blog; Press Trust of India. "UK's first Indian restaurant sells rare menu for more than Rs 7 lakh." India Today.
Vanity Fair's Goat Curry
from: Young, Kate. "Food in books: the goat curry in William Thackeray's Vanity Fair." The Guardian.
At first, curry was the dish of the rich in Britain. They enjoyed curry because it brought back fond memories of their time in India and their fanciful preference for Indian culture.
"Now we have heard how Mrs. Sedley had prepared a fine curry for her son, just as he liked it, and in the course of dinner a portion of this dish was offered to Rebecca.
'What is it?' said she, turning an appealing look to Mr. Joseph.
'Capital,' said he. His mouth was full of it; his face quite red with the delightful exercise of gobbling. 'Mother, it’s as good as my own curries in India.'
'Oh, I must try some, if it is an Indian dish,' said Miss Rebecca. 'I am sure everything must be good that comes from there.' "
- From Vanity Fair (1848) written by William M. Thackeray
However, the production of curry powders in 1784 boosted curry’s popularity among middle-class and working-class families. It became cheaper and easier to prepare curries at home.
C&B’s Curry Powder (left) and its Advert (right) (1784)
from: "Antique Vintage Crosse and Blackwell Curry Powder Bottles Baltimore MD." Worthpoint; Kelley, Laura. "The Origins of Curry Powder." The Silk Road Gourmet.
Later, curry's popularity in Britain helped many Sylhetis (Bangladeshi people), who made curries to a high standard, settle in Britain in the 1940s. They started restaurant businesses and increased regular customers among the British.
Many curry houses in London are run by Sylhetis cooks.
from: Singh, Maanvi. "What's The Difference Between A Curry House And An Indian Restaurant?" WUWM.
The Anglo-Indian communications aimed at developing new dishes desirable to both the British and Indians, which took place at the domestic and local level in India, evolved to national level cultural interactions in Britain. This was possible because such interactions were mostly cooperative and mutually beneficial.