Curry Recipes Online
British Indian Restaurant Recipes - Main Dishes => British Indian Restaurant Recipes - Main Dishes => Dansak => Topic started by: SoberRat on February 19, 2015, 10:03 PM
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Hi. This recipe started as a Pathia recipe (not mine, Curried Away) but I have adapted it to get as close as I can to my local curry house Dhansak. This one is pretty close and I would say that it just needs to be a little stronger in garlic. I use lime juice as I think it gives a slightly richer and more perfumed flavour than lemon. The base is JB's base which I now do in the pressure cooker for the first stage and Curry2go (although I use a mix of curry powders, Rajah and TRS) mix powder. My tomato puree is made using double concentrate puree, passata, water and a little TRS tandoori masala. This recipe is without pineapple which is how it is here in the southeast. All measurements are with measuring spoons. I have included a picture, my only memory, as I ate the lot!
Ingredients (In order of use)
2 TBS Oil
1 Tsp Garlic Paste
0.5 Tsp Methi Leaves
1 TBS Tomato Puree (diluted)
1 TBS Mix Powder
1-2 Tsp Deggi Mirch (to taste)
0.25 Tsp Garam Masala (Rajah)
0.25 Tsp Salt
150ml Base Gravy
6-8 Pieces Precooked Chicken or Chicken Tikka
Juice of 1 Lime
1 TBS Sugar
2 Tsp Shakkar
Handful chopped Coriander
0.5 Cup (dry measure) Precooked Split Red Lentils
1.5 Tsp Mango Chutney
150ml Base Gravy
2 Tsp Pineapple Juice
0.5 Tsp Butter Ghee (optional)
Coriander and a slice of lemon or lime to garnish
Method
Heat the oil on a medium low heat. Add the Garlic paste and cook out the moisture. Add the tomato and methi. When the sizzling reduces add Mix powder, Deggi Mirch, Garam Masala and salt, mix well and add a touch of base to loosen the mix. Allow the spices to singe then add first ladle of base. Stir well, turn up heat to high and reduce sauce. Add chicken, mix and then squeeze in the lime juice, sugar and Shakkar. Add Coriander and two thirds of the lentils. Mix well and stir in the mango chutney. Add the second ladle of base and the rest of the lentils and cook until the sauce reduces to desired consistency then add the pineapple juice and mix. Reduce heat and add the Ghee. Garnish with coriander and lime.
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Hi SoberRat
That is a lovely looking curry you have made yourself there 8)
I am going to give your recipe a go!
I'm not sure about the "Shakkar" though. In your opinion would any rich brown sugar be OK, or do I need to track down something that specifically says "Shakkar"?
Thanks
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Looks very nice SoberRat. Just need a naan and I could quite happily trough that now.
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I'm not sure about the "Shakkar" though. In your opinion would any rich brown sugar be OK, or do I need to track down something that specifically says "Shakkar"?
I took "shakkar" to perhaps be a personal spelling of "shatkora" rather than any reference to sugar; was I mistaken ?
** Phil.
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'Gur shakkar' = natural sugar
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It seems that shakkar is one of those English words as would be pronounced by a native Indian speaker along the same lines as how gravy became gahrabi. Anyway it is in fact jaggery but usually roughly granulated rather than as a block.
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That looks absolutely delicious. Certainly my kind of texture. I possibly feel a dhansak coming on sometime soon :P
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It seems that shakkar is one of those English words as would be pronounced by a native Indian speaker along the same lines as how gravy became gahrabi. Anyway it is in fact jaggery but usually roughly granulated rather than as a block.
What a treasure-trove of useful facts this forum is. A great deal of further relevant information/facts here (http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=2508895).
** Phil.
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Hi guys. Sorry, I've been unable to get to the forum until now. Shakkar is an unrefined sugar and I think any brown sugar would do. This stuff is not hugely sweet but gives a nice, nutty flavour. I got it from a local Asian store.
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It seems that shakkar is one of those English words as would be pronounced by a native Indian speaker along the same lines as how gravy became gahrabi. Anyway it is in fact jaggery but usually roughly granulated rather than as a block.
That is correct SS, it is Jaggery.
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That looks absolutely delicious. Certainly my kind of texture. I possibly feel a dhansak coming on sometime soon :P
Thanks CH, it is currently my favorite along with your NIS that I tried recently. I don't believe this, its 8.25 in the morning and I now fancy a curry.
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...I don't believe this, its 8.25 in the morning and I now fancy a curry.
Any time is curry time! I could do with a plate of your Dhansak right now! :)
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Super looking dish SR.
I've never made a Dhansak, but will be trying this one for sure.
Great stuff :)
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Thanks Garp. I hope you enjoy the recipe. Going off topic, I managed to try your Pakora recipe with precooked chicken (as opposed to Haggis) Made an excellent starter, so thanks for that. I'm going to try it with Tikka next time.
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Cheers bud, glad you enjoyed it :)
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A curry competition has just been started again in our area so I thought I would make this. Ive never had a Dhansak before and didn't practice but I have to say it came out fantastically. Unfortunately I came 2nd out of 9 (to a Thai Yellow Curry) but I was pretty pleased with it. I didn't make it completely to spec, i.e. not Jaggery (just put in a little extra sugar) and as I had to make a portion size for about 10 people I did two batches double the size of your ingredients. I used JB's base (half portion) and Abduls 8 spice (with the addition of some cloves / cardamon....I can't help tinkering!), and the main reason I went down the Dahnsak route is due to really enjoying a Rick Stein recipe for a dahl, you can see that preparation on the right hand side. Great recipe SoberRat, will be making it again. Photo of curry cooking in pan attached.
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Thanks vinotinto, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I have some Abduls 8 spice mixed so I will give it a go with that to see what difference it makes. It does double quite well this recipe as you say. Congratulations on your second place.
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Finally got round to making your Dhansak today, SR. Pictures didn't turn out too well (steam on the lens I think).
But what an interesting dish! I've never had one locally so didn't know quite what to expect, flavour wise, but this was bursting with all sorts of different things. The sweetness of the pineapple juice and sugar with the tartness of the lime is something I hadn't been expecting. A nice chilli kick and a lovely consistency makes this a cracking curry for me, and one I will certainly be making again.
Thanks for posting bud :)
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Great post and thanks for sharing your info.
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Thanks for the review Garp, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I hope your lentil cooking went well.
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Yeah it went well mate, and I loved the texture the lentils gave to the sauce. I followed your original recipe rather than your slightly adjusted. As I said earlier, I wasn't really expecting the sweet and sour flavours to come through quite as strongly as they did, and, as I love a pathia, I could see where this originated.
Going to give it another go in a week or three and hopefully get postable pics this time. Thanks again for the recipe :)
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You're welcome. Look forward to seeing the pics. On reflection of the one I made the other day I think the original recipe is what I will stick to too. :o
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...My tomato puree is made using double concentrate puree, passata, water and a little TRS tandoori masala...
I very nearly missed this ingredient description in transcribing the recipe, SB.
I haven't seen this before (although that goes for absolutely nothing!) and wondered if it's something you've seen elsewhere and adopted for your own cooking, or if it's your own invention.
I didn't have any passata handy when I prepared the dish yesterday, but I did add tandoori masala to the diluted tomato puree. It's hard to know what effect the tandoori masala actually had, but every little helps, I suppose. :)
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I used passata so that I use less water to thin it out. I'm not sure if anyone else does it. As for the tandoori masala, it is difficult to say if it makes any difference, that is a c2go idea and I have just stuck with it.
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Ah, right - thanks! I never really followed C2Go stuff, so I was unaware of that addition. I'll certainly try it out with other dishes to see if there are any subtle differences. I tend to use tomato puree out of a tin (rather than a tube), so I generally portion and freeze the excess. I'll give your passata + tandoori masala a go next time I freeze some.
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I think I first saw tandoori masala used in the tomato paste in that Undercover Curry book (probably where Julian got the idea from). Just doesn't seem to do much in my opinion.
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Passata saves dilution yep.
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Inspired by recent posts, gave SR's Dhansak another roll today. Just as nice as the last time :)
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/7784d243f2008cdce041dfa585fb5e78.JPG) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#7784d243f2008cdce041dfa585fb5e78.JPG)
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That looks fantastic. Original recipe? I am wondering a couple of things, like how many tbsp lime juice is in a whole lime, and what to do about Pineapple juice as I reckon that for the sake of a couple of tsp's, the whole carton will be unused! Or is there a 'cooking' juice available?
Bloody good idea about the lentils too! Had a dhansak once with chickpea in it- it was unbelievably filling for a meatless dish.
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Cheers Onions. I've stuck to SR's original recipe mostly.
Lime - I squeezed a half one in.
Pineapple juice - I was the same as you mate, but ended up buying a tin of pineapple chunks (in juice) and just using that. It was cheaper than the alternative :)
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..................ended up buying a tin of pineapple chunks (in juice) and just using that. It was cheaper than the alternative :)
And you got dessert after your dhansak ;D ;D
Dish looks good Garp. Toying with going out for a beer followed by a TA or a donkey kebab. Or i could just stay in and cook yet another vindaloo, just to further the cause ???
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Just do them all, CH. A pint, a kebab, then home and cook a vindaloo. Sounds like the perfect Saturday night :)
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Yeah! The Life On Mars diet! ;) :D
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Sorry- and meant to ask- what amount of lentils is 'half cup' in grams or tbsp? Trying this tonight- will try and remember photos- here or in the new thread?
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I have no idea mate. I just pre-cooked too much then added a couple of dessert spoonfuls til I thought it looked about right. Not very scientific but I can't be bothered with all this 'cup' nonsense :)
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half a cup is 8 TBS or 113 grams.
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Thanks very much SoberRat! It seems a lot for one person, but what do I know?- never cooked the (moderated) in me life! Here goes nothing ;) Cheers! :D
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That's one of the reasons I only put 2/3 of the lentils in first so that I can have the option of not adding too much but it does make quite a large portion, so some for breakfast. :D
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Thanks very much SoberRat! It seems a lot for one person, but what do I know?- never cooked the (moderated) in me life! Here goes nothing ;) Cheers! :D
I'm sure it will be fine mate. My fear was overcooking them and ending up with soup, so just don't overcook them :)
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Ah ha. This sounds like another tempting opportunity to cock it right up ;) cheers! lol
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This is my new favourite curry! I recommend that if you havent tried this one yet - you give it a go soon and consider making it a day in advance as it tastes even better 24hrs later. Made to spec using JB's base it was bang on BIR for me. Goes well with a simple Indian salad.
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Thanks for trying the recipe Mattie. I'm glad you like it. :)
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just made this to spec... had no deggi mirch so used kashmiri powder instead.
All other ingredients and measures done exactly per the recipe.
found the use of a whole lime way over powering though. could probably use half.
chicken tikka dhansak... I polished it off but not sure if this is my thing
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Found a carton of SR's Dhansak in the freezer and had it last night. A nice reminder of what a lovely dish it is, even from frozen.....I was worried that the lentils would turn into soup during the defrosting/reheating process, but they held up pretty well.
I told Mrs G it was quite a mild dish, but it was a bit spicy for the good lady ;)
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Made this last weekend, and I have to say it's one of the best Dhansaks I've ever made.Even the kids couldn't get enough of this lentily wonder.
I doff my hat to you, sir. ;)
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Thought I'd give this thread a bump as made this tonight for the first time in ages, with some pre-cooked lamb.
Absolutely gorgeous ;D
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Thought I'd give this thread a bump as made this tonight for the first time in ages, with some pre-cooked lamb.
Absolutely gorgeous ;D
That sounds like a good idea Garp. I am cooking curry today and I think a Dhansak will make a nice choice, I have some chicken tikka marinating as I type . I've never had a Lamb dhansak I have to say. How do you precook your lamb?
All the best
Rob
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Made this last weekend, and I have to say it's one of the best Dhansaks I've ever made.Even the kids couldn't get enough of this lentily wonder.
I doff my hat to you, sir. ;)
Thanks for trying it Wickerman I'm glad you enjoyed it.
All the best
Rob
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That sounds like a good idea Garp. I am cooking curry today and I think a Dhansak will make a nice choice, I have some chicken tikka marinating as I type . I've never had a Lamb dhansak I have to say. How do you precook your lamb?
Hi Rob. I use Panpot's method here http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,3922.msg35424.html#msg35424 (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,3922.msg35424.html#msg35424) but miss out the chilli (prefer to add it as required).
I'd always struggled with lamb but this produces consistently great results :)
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Thanks for that Garp. I will give that a go sometime. I've never made a curry with lamb so it's on my to do list.
All the best
Rob
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Give it a go, mate. Since I started using this method of cooking it, I prefer lamb now (for most curries anyway). Certainly worked well in your dhansak and any other tomato-based curries I've tried it in.
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Hi SB, if you can get it I would recommend a mutton back strap! Very tender and not at all fatty
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=backstrap+of+mutton&client=safari&hl=en-gb&tbm=isch&imgil=idFmTiweMkDwwM%253A%253BnbrtIDm9r83n6M%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.icelandlamb.is%25252Fproducts%25252Fmutton%25252F&source=iu&pf=m&fir=idFmTiweMkDwwM%253A%252CnbrtIDm9r83n6M%252C_&usg=__RmCn-qk3mRCygi7t-cjEWY3H7hs%3D&biw=1466&bih=733&dpr=1.31&ved=0ahUKEwjO7eeEmNPTAhXBjCwKHXWLCAQQyjcIOA&ei=7oQJWc6-BcGZsgH1lqIg#imgdii=EUlLXaEBxD8-KM:&imgrc=idFmTiweMkDwwM:&spf=213
Ed
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This is a great recipe -- Thank you!