Administer in small portions (4)
I believe the answer is:
mete
'administer in small portions' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for mete that I've seen before include "Administer or hand out" , "Dispense, give (out)" , "Give as due - say punishment" , "Apportion" , "Dole (out)" .)