Topic: base gravy storage in the freezer getting more in there.

[h4ppy-chris]

i don't know if this has been covered, but this is what i have started doing.
when making the base and get to the add water part I DON'T..
i just put it in the plastic tubes and freeze it, that way i get 50 curry's into one draw in the freezer.
when i want to make a curry i take one tube out and de-frost it, add the water bring to the boil and make sure it's the right consistency.

my tubes are 1Lt and i get 5 curry's from one tube once diluted.

[Stephen Lindsay]

I recall Razor posting something similar so that he could maximise space in the freezer/fridge - I think he came up with a spice base made into a paste.

[natterjak]

Hi Chris

The way I approach this is more or less how you described - I restrict the amount of water I add when cooking base so the result is concentrated, about twice as thick as I want to cook with. I then freeze into 350ml lock n lock boxes (part code HPL806) which stack into a freezer draw in a fairly space efficient way:



When it comes to defrosting, I just turn the contents out into a saucepan (tip: freezing them on their side makes turning them out easier as they don't "airlock" due to a vacuum holding the frozen base inside the container) then I add about 200ml of water back into the lock n lock box, swill it around to get the last remnants of the frozen base to dissolve into it, then add that to the pan.  This seems to me to be the most space and energy efficient way of freezing base and results in no wastage. The frozen block of base swimming in its water can be left to defrost at room temp or speeded up by being put onto the hob. At low temps the base will look like it's not combining with the water, but get it close to boiling and it all comes back together nicely into a smooth base sauce.

[mikeyp]

Hi all, I store my base gravy in Quart Ziplock bags from Costco, 300ml fits perfect and they are pretty flat so you can get loads in the freezer without taking up too much room..

[RubyDoo]

i don't know if this has been covered, but this is what i have started doing.
when making the base and get to the add water part I DON'T..
i just put it in the plastic tubes and freeze it, that way i get 50 curry's into one draw in the freezer.
when i want to make a curry i take one tube out and de-frost it, add the water bring to the boil and make sure it's the right consistency.

my tubes are 1Lt and i get 5 curry's from one tube once diluted.

What are the 'tubes' you refer to?

[h4ppy-chris]

i don't know if this has been covered, but this is what i have started doing.
when making the base and get to the add water part I DON'T..
i just put it in the plastic tubes and freeze it, that way i get 50 curry's into one draw in the freezer.
when i want to make a curry i take one tube out and de-frost it, add the water bring to the boil and make sure it's the right consistency.

my tubes are 1Lt and i get 5 curry's from one tube once diluted.

What are the 'tubes' you refer to?

Sorry mate i missed your question, the're the same ones that the TA's use but 1 ltr size.

[emin-j]

Could Chris's ' tubes ' be tubs 

[Razor]

Hi Chris,

As Stephen said, I explored this back in late 2010, and I was very happy with the results.  It was interesting to discover that, even though I'd used exactly the same ingredients as I would when making my usual base at that time, the flavour changed somewhat.  Don't let that put you off though, as the flavour was just as good in my opinion.

Anyway, here is the link to the thread that I started back then.  Page 2 is where the interesting bit starts http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,5180.0.html

Hope you enjoy reading it,

Ray

[wasp-598]

natterjak   that seem like alot of curry are you a takeaway.

[natterjak]

No, I just like the convenience of a ready stock of base on hand and I find that cooking 8 litres of base doesn't take much longer than 2 litres, so it makes sense to cook in bulk every couple of months.