Curry Recipes Online
Curry Chat => Lets Talk Curry => Topic started by: vin daloo on August 02, 2005, 06:51 PM
-
A few people have mentioned tomato ketchup being used in curries, this is probably the case if the stuff they use is not as thick as puree you get from a tube. Last time i went to the indian wholesalers i noticed, next to the large tubs of pataks pastes were large plastic containers of heins tom ketchup, right next to an equal sized colemans mint sauce. we dont get bottles of ketchup on the table in birs, so it got to be goin somewhere.
-
Hi Vin Daloo & all,
I have brought this matter up before on this site but as happens frequently here, No one took any notice of my reports that suppliers to the BIR trade in my area stock these mega bottles of tom ketchup, mint sauce and english mustard alongside the patak's sauces.
Someone actually posted words to the effect of "so they have bottles of tomato ketchup in a restaurant, so what".
Having said that, if you find the tomato puree in tins (sold in small tins in some large supermarkets and in large tins in asian stores) it is very different and cooks into the oil much quicker than the tube double concentrate stuff.
As usual, I hope this HELPS,
cheers all,
Blondie
-
Blondie, have you ever tried adding mustard to your sauce/curry? I havnt yet myself, i might try it later - along with ketchup. I believe youve had a sample recipe from the new balti book havnt you? If it tastes the same as the restaurant, Isnt your battle over?
-
If it tastes the same as the restaurant, Isnt your battle over?
I don't think it will ever be fully over unless you install a full size restuarant kitchen in your house, Petes halfway there :D
-
I believe youve had a sample recipe from the new balti book havnt you?? If it tastes the same as the restaurant, Isnt your battle over?
Hi Vin daloo,
Yes I have had a sample recipe from the Kushi Balti book and yes it was as if the chef himself had cooked it. BUT, as I have posted before this is an out and out authentic Balti restaurant, of which I have very little experince.? The restaurants in my area are not authentic Balti houses they are BIRs that have changed the name to Balti because it became more popular. IMO these places do not cook the same BALTI food as the Kushi which is a proper brummie (the british home of balti) Balti house.
I am very optimistic about the Kushi book because I know that a balti can be produced, from the book, that is the same as I have eaten cooked by the chef (co-writer) of the book.? I can only give this opinion based on the one recipe that I have tried which was a standard chicken balti.
On the question of tom puree or ketchup, there was neither of these in the recipe for base sauce, pre-cooked main ingredients or final dish from the Kushi.? There was only tinned chopped tomatoes and fresh chopped tomato in the recipes.
Cheers vin daloo,
Blondie
-
I have used Tomato Ketchup & Puree in a Phall & it turned out nice, but over doing the ketchup can ruin the flavor of a curry ( yep ive done it ;D).
I ve also used fresh tomato's pureed & had great success with this method also .
-
I tried the ketchup yesterday, might have overdone it,chucked some mustard in too - tasted a bit crap though. back to the drawing board.
-
Ive heard of the use of ketchup in BIRs from a number of sources, tried it myself and I dont think it made much difference
-
hi guys/girls
my local indian uses tomato "paste" but i have asked everywhere to no avail then one day i was in asda and found sundried tomato paste by salca and i have been using it instead of tomato puree in bruce edwards recipes and now my wife loves them.
i hope this helps
cheers gary
-
I managed to put a whole tea spoon of horseradish in and brown it off......i thought at the time was garlic puree.....whoooooops ;D
Still was not the missing taste. ::)
S 8)
-
I often use a mix of 1 part ketchup/2 parts puree thinned down with a little water. I find this works well.
-
The one time I've eaten in a BIR in Scotland, everything tasted of tomato ketchup. Even the onion salad came covered in the stuff.
-
The onion salad was probably spiced onions. Often used to accompany popadoms up here.
Recipe as follows
1 large onion sliced
4 tbl ketchup
1 tbl mint sauce
1 tsp salt
1tsp chilli powder
mix in a bowl, leave standing in the fridge for 1 hour........ magnificent !!
-
I have never seen tomato ketchup in any of the kitchens, I have been in.
I've seen the mint.
I know they use mint sauce for the raita yoghurt mix.
It also is part of the tandoori marinade.
I have tried cooking with kethcup and it's never taken the meal to another level.
Restaurants serve chips
Maybe it's just to go with that?
-
Ive tried ketchup once before but it just tasted like my normal curry but with ketchup in it, I could taste thats what it was and im fairly certain ive never had a takeaway curry with ketchup in.
-
I used Asda standard tomato puree from a tube last night
The results were so ordinairy
I think getting the right puree is very important
My best results have been using canned tomato puree from Asian shops
-
Hi All.
Went to my local takeaway last week for a chicken tikka masala,as I am satisfied with the KD
base I turned my attention to the matter of the red paste which is cooked following the
garlic/ginger stage i get on well with the young waiter and asked him what was in the red
mixture in the ice cream sized tub, he said " I dont know all of it, but there is definetely
water, sugar,and many other things added to it." So logically looking at this, I summise the following.If this paste was pre cooked in large quantities with its appropriate spice combination it is simply a matter of garlic/ginger,red paste mix, base sauce to consistency and garnish finished dish,also i read recently that if tomato is cooked slowly (caramelised) it retains its water content and reduces acidity, which i have always found to be an undesirable back taste. I have also seen large tins of tomato paste at my local asian food store made by EUROFOODS check out there website for details.will persue the red paste mystery. steve e
-
A few people have mentioned tomato ketchup being used in curries, this is probably the case if the stuff they use is not as thick as puree you get from a tube.? Last time i went to the indian wholesalers i noticed, next to the large tubs of pataks pastes were? large plastic containers of heins tom ketchup, right next to an equal sized colemans mint sauce.? we dont get bottles of ketchup on the table in birs, so it got to be goin somewhere.
you are correct but the only thing ive seen them put tomato ketchup in is onion chutney.And that is the cooks optional
-
A BIR owner told me his chef uses ketchup in the final dish.
-
Hi All.
Went to my local takeaway last week for a chicken tikka masala,as I am satisfied with the KD
base I turned my attention to the matter of the red paste which is cooked following the
garlic/ginger stage i get on well with the young waiter and asked him what was in the red
mixture in the ice cream sized tub, he said " I dont know all of it, but there is definetely
water, sugar,and many other things added to it." So logically looking at this, I summise the following.If this paste was pre cooked in large quantities with its appropriate spice combination it is simply a matter of garlic/ginger,red paste mix, base sauce to consistency and garnish finished dish,also i read recently that if tomato is cooked slowly (caramelised) it retains its water content and reduces acidity, which i have always found to be an undesirable back taste. I have also seen large tins of tomato paste at my local asian food store made by EUROFOODS check out there website for details.will persue the red paste mystery. steve e
hi I bileve the mixture you seen them put in to the tikka masala is the marinade from making chicken tikka
-
I bileve the mixture you seen them put in to the tikka masala is the marinade from making chicken tikka
Or could it be a blend of various ingredients which it's convenient to add at one stage, rather than taking a bit of this and a bit of that, which would take longer for a kitchen in a hurry on a Friday night? If so, it goes into the 'secret mix' category, a bit like some people say for the spices added to base sauce by the master chef but perhaps not known to others in the kitchen.
Regards
George
-
Hi George,
I personally think you are spot on George,it makes sense to do it that way for sheer speed,
I am in the process of trying to find out what goes into this mix,because if you look at the quantity used, if it was only tomato puree or paste it would dominate the entire flavour with
an overpowering taste of tomato.and no way is it tandoori marinade its consistency is all wrong.So on it goes ;D
steve e
-
I tend to agree . The BIRs I've witnessed don't use any dry spices, so maybe the dry spices are mixed in the red sauce.
-
Hi All,
When you consider the vast majority of the meal is precooked, meat, curry base.onions etc
it follows on that if this mixture was also precooked which i am sure it is,then the spice mix would
be added to a watered down tomato based sauce ( in the case of tikka masala)prior to precooking which then requires only heating, which is nothing more than pataks ready mixed pastes, but I feel is a much more diluted and subtle mix in the bir. My reasoning comes from only the smallest addition of say pataks tandoori paste in the final dish will overwhelm the taste. ???
steve e