Curry in the United Kingdom facts for kids
Curry is a super popular and tasty dish in the United Kingdom. It's a spicy meal that originally comes from Asian countries. People in Britain have been cooking curry since 1747! That's when Hannah Glasse shared the first recipe for chicken curry. Over time, many more curry recipes appeared in popular cookbooks.
In Britain, curries often use Indian names to describe them. For example, a korma is a mild sauce with almond and coconut. A Madras is a hot, slightly sour sauce. And a pasanda is a mild sauce with cream and coconut milk. One special type of curry, called chicken tikka masala, was actually created in Britain. It's become so popular that some people call it the UK's national dish!
The very first South Asian curry restaurant opened in London in 1810. More restaurants followed in the early 1900s. Veeraswamy, which started in 1926, is the oldest South Asian restaurant still open in Britain today. By the 1970s, most curry restaurants in the country were owned and run by people from Bangladesh, especially from the Sylhet area.
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Curry: A British Favorite
Curry is incredibly popular in the United Kingdom. You can find a curry restaurant in almost every town! Because it's so loved, curry is often called Britain's "adopted national dish." In 2016, there were an estimated 12,000 curry houses in the UK. These restaurants employed about 100,000 people and made around £4.2 billion each year.
The food served in these restaurants is South Asian food, but it's often cooked to suit British tastes. However, more and more people are looking for authentic South Asian flavors. As of 2015, curry houses made up one-fifth of all restaurant businesses in the UK.
How Curry Came to Britain
The first curry recipe in Britain was printed in a cookbook called The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy in 1747. This book was written by Hannah Glasse. Her first recipe for "currey" used only black pepper and coriander seeds. Later versions of her book added ingredients like turmeric and ginger. Hot spices like chili weren't mentioned much at first. This is because chili plants only came to South Asia in the late 1500s and were mostly popular in southern India back then.
Many more curry recipes appeared in cookbooks during the 1800s. Famous cooks like Mrs Beeton included them. Mrs Beeton's recipe for curry powder had many spices, including coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. She also said it was cheaper to buy the powder from a shop!
Curry became more and more popular in Britain because many British people worked or served in the military in India. After World War II, even more immigrants from South Asia came to Britain. This made curry even more popular. Today, curry is a big part of British cooking. Since the late 1990s, chicken tikka masala has even been called a "true British national dish."
The Rise of Curry Houses
In 1810, a man named Dean Mahomed from India opened the first South Asian curry house in England. It was called the Hindoostane Coffee House in London. Before this, some London coffee houses might have served curry.
The first modern, fancy South Asian restaurant in Britain was probably The Shafi in 1915. Then came Veeraswamy in London in 1926. Veeraswamy is still open today and is the oldest surviving South Asian restaurant in Britain.
Many people from Bangladesh settled in big cities in the UK. In London, they often lived in the East End. This area had been a first stop for many immigrants working in the docks. Over time, these immigrants opened food places and curry restaurants. Brick Lane in East London is now very famous for its many curry houses.
Until the early 1970s, more than three-quarters of South Asian restaurants in Britain were owned by people from Bangladesh. Most of these owners came from the Sylhet Division in Bangladesh. By 1998, about 85% of curry restaurants in the UK were British Bangladeshi restaurants. This number has gone down a bit since then, but Bangladeshi restaurants are still very important.
In the early 2010s, the popularity of curry houses started to slow down. This happened because you could buy this type of food in many other restaurants. Also, it became easier to cook curry at home with ingredients from supermarkets.
No matter where the restaurant owners come from, the menus are usually influenced by many different South Asian foods. Sometimes, they even include dishes from other places, like Persian dishes. The best restaurants make fresh sauces every day. They use fresh ingredients and grind their own spices. Other places might use frozen ingredients or pre-made spice mixes.
Popular Curry Dishes
Restaurants in Britain use South Asian names for their popular dishes. Even though the names come from traditional South Asian foods, the recipes are often changed to suit Western tastes. Here are some common ones:
- Balti – This curry style might have started in Birmingham. It's usually cooked and served in a special iron pot called a balty.
- Bhuna – A medium-spicy dish with a thick sauce and some vegetables.
- Biryani – Spiced rice and meat cooked together. It's often served with a vegetable curry sauce.
- Dhansak – In curry houses, this can be made with lamb or chicken. It often has pineapple in it.
- Dopiaza – A medium curry that has onions that have been both boiled and fried.
- Jalfrezi – Made with onion, green chili, and a thick sauce.
- Korma – A mild, yellow curry with almond and coconut powder.
- Madras curry – This is known as the "standard hot, slightly sour curry" you find in Indian restaurants.
- Pasanda – A mild curry sauce made with cream, coconut milk, and almonds or cashews. It's served with lamb, chicken, or king prawns.
- Pathia – A hot curry, similar to a "Madras," but with lemon juice and tomato added.
- Phaal – This is often the hottest curry a restaurant can make. It's a British invention, not something you'd find in India.
- Roghan josh – A medium-spicy curry, usually with lamb or beef. It has a deep red sauce with tomatoes and paprika.
- Tandoori and Tikka – These are dry pieces of tandoori chicken and chicken tikka. They are spiced and cooked in a tandoor, which is a special clay oven.
- Vindaloo – Generally thought of as the classic "hot" restaurant curry.
