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British Indian Restaurant Recipes - Main Dishes => British Indian Restaurant Recipes - Main Dishes => Madras => Topic started by: Chris303 on February 24, 2008, 01:40 PM

Title: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 24, 2008, 01:40 PM
This is the Madras recipe I follow. If I have missed anything out then let me know, or fire any questions at me. Delicious

Madras Recipe

Serves 1

4 tbsp x Chile Paste (seperate recipe)
4 x Red Chiles (heads cut off) (half for extra heat)
3 x Garlic Cloves
3" x Fresh Ginger
2 tbsp x Finely Chopped Onion
20g Fresh Coconut
250ml x heated Balti Base Sauce (Any other base should do)
1 x Tomato precooked Chicken Breast (recipe seperate)
2 tbsp x Sun Dried Tomato Paste (thin out with some water)
1 x Tomato (chopped)
2 tbsp x Rice Bran Oil
1 tbsp x Butter Ghee
2 tbsp x Coriander Leaves


[Spices]

2 tbsp x Madras masala paste (seperate recipe)
1 tbsp x Balti Masala paste (Pat Chapman recipe)

Grind Garlic and Ginger into a paste with a little water
Add coconut with the spices.

Heat all oil on highest heat.

Fry garlic/ginger paste till brown.

Fry onion, and whole chiles for 30 seconds

Add tomato paste

Fry Coconut / spice mix for a minute.

Add precooked chicken breast (let some of the tomatoes come in as well)

Add base sauce bit by bit to keep temp high, only adding more once oil
is seperating. Keep doing till all base has been added.

Add chopped coriander, and chopped tomato.

Heat balti till it starts smoking, and put the hot curry in straight away and serve
while it is smoking and sizzling.

Chile Paste

50 x Dried Red Chiles.

Soak in warm water for 30 mins.

Put all the soaked chiles in blender, and blend enough of the water
to get a medium paste consistancy.

Regridgerate.

Tomato precooked chicken

2 x Chicken Breasts - cut into bite sized pieces
1 x Tin of chopped tomato (blended)
1 tbsp x Balti Masala paste
2 tsp x Paprika
1 tsp x Tumeric
2 tsp x Chile Paste (as above)
1 x Garlic Clove
1 tsp x Cumin Seeds
2 tbsp x Oil

Add powdered spices with Chile paste (add some more water if needed)


Heat oil on highest heat

Add Cumin seeds

Add garlic and fry till brown

Add spice paste and fry for a minute

Add Chicken and seal.

Add blended tomatos. Bring to boil and simmer until chicken is tender.

Madras Masala

6 tsp x Paprika Powder
6 tsp x Coriander Powder
8 x Peppercorns
4 x Bay Leaves
20cm Cinnamon (Not cassia)
12 x Cloves
2 tsp x Cumin Powder
2 tsp x Poppy Seeds
1 tsp x Fennel Seeds

Roast each as nessessary, grind all together, and store in airtight container.
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Cory Ander on February 24, 2008, 01:52 PM
Thanks for sharing your recipe Chris  8)

Will you also be posting the recipes for:


"Rice bran oil" is a little unusual isn't it?  I don't think I've ever seen that?  What special properties does that have Chris?
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 24, 2008, 02:04 PM
For the balti base sauce and balti masala I use the recipes in the Pat Chapman book.

I am not sure the legalities of posting these.
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Cory Ander on February 24, 2008, 02:11 PM
Well, copied verbatim, it's a breach of copyright Chris  :P

Maybe you could post your own interpretation of the these recipes to make your madras recipe more meaningful to people and enable them to replicate it?
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 24, 2008, 02:20 PM
okies.

Also I use rice bran oil for all my curry making.

It has a high smoke point.

It lowers cholesterol.

Has a very mild taste.

Just as healthy as Olive Oil in general.
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 24, 2008, 05:23 PM
Saved a second portion for today... although I came in drunk last night and scoffed half of it so I have not bothered heating a balti up as there wasnt much there.

(http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/474/dcp1824bu3.jpg)
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: mike travis on February 24, 2008, 07:11 PM
Damn  >:( Chris that looks fantastic. I say damn because it`s yet another one I wanna have a go at. My to do list just keeps gettin longer and longer...  ;D
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: JerryM on February 25, 2008, 03:52 PM
Chris,

you don't do things by half - i can see that.

just to be sure on the qty's so i can try out safely - is it really 7 x tbsp (15ml spoon) of spice (4 chilli paste, 2 madras masala paste, 1 balti masala paste).

perhaps give an idea of the water qty to the make the pastes.

 
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 25, 2008, 04:12 PM
yep.

Each tbsp of chili paste pretty much equates to 1 full blended chile by my reckoning. This is just the heat/pungancy and some colour for the dish.

The madras masala can be dry fried if you wish... You need to be a master at making sure things dont stick though so I kept the recipe as pastes :) - The madras masala is the core of the taste for this dish though, and the Balti masala is just added to all my Balti dishes so there is still a signature taste present even in all the different dishes.

I am not into the type of curry making where 5 dishes are all the exact same except some different veg, and different amounts of chile powder. I am trying to create regional tastes in the BIR method of cooking.

Base wise --- use any base you wish as long as it is lightly spiced.

Water quantity - I just add enough so that it will flick off the spoon easily. If it runs off by itself then too much water, and if it sticks after a small flick then not enough. :) Measurements dont need to be exact :)

I love the taste from this  - No madras recipe can be made without coconut imho. A squeeze of lemon if you wish as well.

I am doing a vindaloo this weekend - proper Goa vindaloo with wine and plenty garlic.
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: JerryM on February 25, 2008, 05:05 PM
Chris,

spot on info. many thanks. sold on the coconut also.

going to have to give it a go. the goe & plenty of garlic is right up my street too.
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: JerryM on February 27, 2008, 04:54 PM
Chris,

wow this is some curry and so very different to the "tomato, garlic, ginger" type i'm used to. i put it in the fine dining class.

i was particularly interested in the high proportion of fresh ginger (3") and spices (3 tbsp c/w my norm say max 2 tsp for the qty of base). i was also interested in the sun dried tomato which i like and use in other non Indian recipes with good success. i was amazed that the ginger, spices & sun dried all worked very well.

the Chopped Onion and Coconut (i used cream block) also added a very nice touch. i dipped out on the chilli using only 2 (see below).

my only thought when i make again is to reduce the qty of curry leaves in the balti masala. it may well be what some would rave for or a key part of the intended taste of the dish but for me their taste stuck out too much (would change from 20 leaves to say 5 or ~1 tsp max). i also might change the spice ration to 50:50 balti masal:madras masala from the existing 2:1. and of course for me - star anise goes in all.

with these small tweaks this would be a top notch curry for me. many thanks for the post.

Nb caution i had difficulty making the chilli paste with my hand held mixer as the released vapour in the air got my throat - must do is to use a covered grinder. I knew about the safety guidelines for grinding chilli but wrongly thought the water cover would be enough.

Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Bobby Bhuna on February 27, 2008, 05:07 PM
This recipe sounds great. I'll being having a bash at this one in the very near future. As always, I'll take loads of pics to let you see how I get on... 8)
Title: Re: Balti Chicken Madras
Post by: Chris303 on February 27, 2008, 05:36 PM
Nice One. I am only allowed to make Curry at weekends so need to wait till friday night until I can do some more :D argh