[Sca-cooks] OOP - curries

[Terry Decker]

Not Imperial measure.  Imperial measure was introduced about 1826.  Prior to
that, the English used the same measures as the US.  For example, our gallon
is based on the Elizabethean wine gallon.

Troy weights were the standard used to measure precious metals at the great
fair in Troyes, France.  It was based on Roman weights and became the
standard for measuring precious metals in much of Europe.  One pound troy is
5,760 grains and has 12 ounces.  One pound avourdupois is 7000 grains and
has 16 ounces.  One ounce avdp is .911 troy ounces.  And 1 pound avdp is 1.2
pounds troy.  A troy ounce is about 31 to 32 grams.

A tola is the weight of one silver rupee or 11.7 grams or 180 troy grains.
The ten tola gold bar which is common throughout Asia and the Middle East is
the smuggler's favorite.  If 1 prasthra = 29 tolas, then the prastha is just
under 1 pound troy.  Considering some of the disparities, I suspect we may
be discussing wet and dry measures having the same name and that we may be
comparing apples and oranges.

Also, given that India has 16 major languages and hundreds of dialects,
there may be regional variations in the precisely what is meant.  The
Medieval and Renaissance German states present the same kind of problem with
local standardization of weights and measures.

Bear

>Wow! Thanks for the info! I will be careful and try and double check the
>measures.  But not being used to the imperial system, what exactly is a
>troy ounce?
>
>
>>If I have the measures right, a pala = 2.3 ounces (based on copper coinage
>>so the measure is probably troy), a prastha = 16 pala or about 3 pounds
>>troy, a kumbha (probably your kuduba) is a vessel (also the Indian
>>astrological equivalent of Aquarius) that has been translated as 20 dronas
>>or 2 dronas which may represent a variation between dry and wet measure.
20
>>dronas = 3 bushels 3 gal. = 30.9 gal or 1.54 gal/drona.  In this instance
I
>>would use 3 gal for a kumbha and probably vary it to match the recipe.
>>
>>Dharana, I haven't been able to work out, but it is a small apothecary
>>measure.  If the 10:1 ration between dharanas and pala is correct then you
>>are talking .23 troy ounces.
>>2 yavas (barley grain) = 1 gunja (berry)
>>2 gunja = 1 valla (wheat grain)
>>8 valla = 1 dharana (rice grain)
>>
>>Be careful using these measures, because I am uncertain of the accuracy of
>>the translators.
>
>Well it's more than I had to begin with!! In a foot note I had for
>information that a pala = 25 rattis and a Dharana, 2.5 rattis. Hence 10
>dharana in a pala.
>
>I also had a note that 1 kuduba = 22 tolas, and 1 prastha = 29 tolas. Hence
>the approximate 3 to 4 ratio.
>
>However, if a prastha is a vessel, it may be safer to assume that the meat
>was cooked in it rather than on a spit.