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Rice and Indian Curry

Wash half a pound of Patna rice in two or three waters. Drain it, and throw it into plenty of cold water, bring it slowly to the boil, keeping the saucepan uncovered, and let it boil gently until the grains are tender when pressed between the thumb and finger, but are still quite distinct from one another. The rice will need to boil about a quarter of an hour. Drain and dry it on a sieve before the fire. Take two pounds of uncooked meat of any kind, or of rabbit, chicken, or fish, and cut this up into neat pieces convenient for serving. Slice two large onions, and fry them in butter till they are lightly browned without being at all burnt. Take them up, and fry the meat in the same fat, moving it about to keep it from burning. Mix a dessert-spoonful of curry-paste, a desert-spoonful of curry-powder, and a tea-spoonful of ground rice very smoothly with a cupful of milk. Pour this over the meat, and add half a pint of good stock made from bones, the fried onions, a little salt, and a clove of garlic, if this is liked, but the curry will be more generally acceptable if the garlic is omitted. Stir the sauce till it boils, and simmer all gently together till the meat is tender. The time required will vary with the nature of the meat. Put the pieces of meat on a dish. Lift out the pieces of onion, and stir into the curry the juice of half a lemon. Pour the sauce over the meat, and serve. Send the rice to table on a separate dish. It should be arranged that the curry and the rice shall be done enough at the same time. Time, altogether, about two hours. Sufficient for six or eight persons.