Curry Recipes Online
Beginners Guide => Just Joined? Introduce Yourself => Topic started by: ootini on March 30, 2011, 09:17 AM
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Hey all,
Just thought I'd introduce myself, my names Dave, im 30 and from North Wales. I gotta say, having a quick read through some of the recipes it's become apparent there's a whole lot more to cooking a curry than I had ever dreamed!
I've actually jumped on the forum as I'm meant to be cook for the family on Saturday and fancied trying out a few curry recipes. So stay tuned! I may be asking some very stupid questions shortly!
Anyway, hope to chat to you all soon.
Dave
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Welcome to the forum Dave. :)
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Hi Dave & welcome.
I agree it can be daunting at first and there's a lot of gearing up to be done in terms of obtaining spices, cooking base sauces and pastes before you can even attempt some of the final dishes. I reckon it's well worth it though as the quality of the end result is great but like I say, a lot of time involved. This is why it becomes something of a hobby to some people.
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I've actually got a relatively impressive spice rack already. I've cooked quite a few curries in my time I've just never tried using base sauces. This may actually be a very handy method as this weekend I'm meant to be cooking four totally different curries to make a bit of a banquet.
The plan is a Beef Madras, Lamb Rogan Josh, Chicken Pasanda and Vegetable Dansak. Am I right in thinking that these curries are "so" different that you couldnt use the same base sauce for them all? As in the Madras and Pasanda are light years apart in terms of taste and heat.
Thanks
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The general idea is that a single base is used as a foundation to every dish. The 'art' is in creating the dish at the final cook, where different ingredients, components and levels of spicing are added. There are of course exceptions to this, but it is the general practice.
I recently purchased the Authentic Balti Curry book and can recommend it as a good place to start, though it is based on balti. I did a basic review of my experiences with it: http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5591.0 (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5591.0)
There are also plenty of good recipes on the forum.
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Thanks very much for all your replies folks!
I reckon tonight I shall have a punt at making a base sauce then! ;D
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Welcome aboard, Dave.
The plan is a Beef Madras, Lamb Rogan Josh, Chicken Pasanda and Vegetable Dansak. Am I right in thinking that these curries are "so" different that you couldnt use the same base sauce for them all? As in the Madras and Pasanda are light years apart in terms of taste and heat.
IMHO, no, so long as you go for a simple base (such as KD1 (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5161.0)) the sole function of which is to create the correct consistency/texture for the final dish. If you go for a more complex base that already involves a significant number of spices, then your options are probably more restricted. As this is your first venture into base-based BIR cuisine, I would suggest starting with a simple base containing little more than onions, ginger, garlic, water, oil, tomato, and a minimum of spices; as you gain more experience, try some of the more complex bases (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?board=2.0), but don't forget to adjust the final spicing to suit.
** Phil.
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Thanks very much, so I think I'm beginning to get my head round this.
How does this sound for a plan. This evening I'll make some of the KD1 base sauce you referred to. Then on Friday (or Saturday morning) I'll precook my chicken, beef, lamb and veg, not really found the methods yet but I'm browsing. Then come Saturday evening when the troops start getting hungry simply knock the four curries together using the base sauce, precooked meat/veg altering the spices and other ingredients to create the individual final curry dishes.
Does that sound right?
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I should point out I'm a bit of a preparation freak, so the whole base sauce, precooked meat thing really suits me!
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Here is a good place to start for your pre-cooked veg: http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5537.msg54474#msg54474 (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5537.msg54474#msg54474)
Preparation is definitely the best way forward. Four dishes in one cook will be a challenge. I usually map out my ingredients for each dish on separate plates. For example Garlic & Ginger, Chopped Onions, then a salt, mix powder, etc Tomato Puree, Methi, Coriander, Then each section is added at intervals during the cook and as I have the planned dishes laid out, I cut down on any mistakes. Thats the theory anyway. ::)
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I'm thinking you may be right about trying four in one go. Especially if I'm not trying to precook stuff for the first time.
I may reduce it to a Lamb Rogan Josh and Chicken Pasanda and ditch the other two. Hmmmm.
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What you have to remember is that in a BIR the 6-8mins it takes them to create the dish you have just ordered, also has hours and hours of preparation behind it to make it possible.
As long as you are prepared you should be ok, but you will almost certainly have to pre-cook your meat, veg, rice etc. if you want to put 4 mains on the table in a short period of time.
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Ok so, please bear with me. I don't mean to be a pain but I'm just trying to get my head around whether I'd be capable of doing all this on Saturday. Can you just check the following plan for glaring errors.
Tonight I create the KD1 base sauce you mentioned. I keep about a pint of Stage 2 sauce for precooking the meat and go on to turn the rest into Stage 3 sauce (with toms etc).
Then on Friday, I use the pint of stage 2 sauce reserved to precook my vegetables, diced beef, cubed lamb neck fillet and cubed chicken fillet. This all goes in the fridge, joining the stage 3 sauce.
Then on saturday, I'll precook some pilau rice while preparing the four curries using the precooked meat, stage 3 sauce and each individual dishes "signature" ingredients lets say. Which off the top of my head will be chillis and tomato puree for the Madras, Paprika and tomatoes for the Rogan Josh, Almonds and coconut milk for the Pasanda and lemon juice, onions and lentils for the Dansak.
Apologies if I've got the "signature" ingredients wrong, thats just from the top of my head at the mo. I'll investigate them properly. Are BIR curries ok staying warm in dishes in an oven for ten minutes or so while you prepare each in turn? or do you basically have to work in parralel and get all four on the go at the same time? I'll have my ole man about to help so it would be possible to a certain extent.
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I haven't tried and am not familiar with the KD1 method and recipe, Phil is best placed to answer this for you. The pre-cooked meat & veg should be cooked and stored separately to the stage 3 base.
I would suggest you cook each dish one at a time, unless of course you feel confident to do so otherwise. They should be fine if covered and in a warm oven.
I'd recommend taking a look at some of the videos posted, to give you a better idea. This chap has been popular: http://www.youtube.com/user/dipuraja1 (http://www.youtube.com/user/dipuraja1)
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Tonight I create the KD1 base sauce you mentioned. I keep about a pint of Stage 2 sauce for precooking the meat and go on to turn the rest into Stage 3 sauce (with toms etc).
Then on Friday, I use the pint of stage 2 sauce reserved to precook my vegetables, diced beef, cubed lamb neck fillet and cubed chicken fillet. This all goes in the fridge, joining the stage 3 sauce.
I would follow Axe's advice (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5669.msg56099#msg56099) regards the pre-cooking of the vegetables : it produces superb results, IMHO, far better than you could achieve pre-cooking them in KD1 base plus turmeric and paprika alone. As far as the meat goes, the chicken is the least critical : that will soak up the flavours during the final stage quite well; for lamb/mutton/goat, however, I would suggest trying to infuse some additional flavours during the pre-cook phase (which will need to be longer for lamb, and longer still for goat or mutton). I've never made a beef curry (I'm a closet Hindu !) but I would probably err on the side of pre-infusing more flavour rather than less.
Then on saturday, I'll precook some pilau rice while preparing the four curries using the precooked meat, stage 3 sauce and each individual dishes "signature" ingredients lets say. Which off the top of my head will be chillis and tomato puree for the Madras, Paprika and tomatoes for the Rogan Josh, Almonds and coconut milk for the Pasanda and lemon juice, onions and lentils for the Dansak.
Apologies if I've got the "signature" ingredients wrong, thats just from the top of my head at the mo. I'll investigate them properly. Are BIR curries ok staying warm in dishes in an oven for ten minutes or so while you prepare each in turn?
Curries improve with keeping, so as long as the chicken does not overcook while you are keeping things warm, all should be well :)
** Phil.
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Thanks for your advice. I'm not panicing too much about the precooking as, with it being precooking, i can take my time over it etc... It's the final cook and combination im stressing over now.
I notice there isn't a section for Pasanda recipes? what's the reason for this? too simple? too boring?
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I notice there isn't a section for Pasanda recipes? what's the reason for this? too simple? too boring?
Don't know ! There is one thread (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=3550.0) which focuses on Lamb Pasanda, but apart from the rather important point of warning the reader to be very wary concerning adding garam masala to any dish intended to be BIR-style in flavour, I don't think it tells you a great deal ...
** Philp.
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I have always thought that the main difference between the Pasanda and the Korma was the use of Yoghurt in the Pasanda instead of cream in the Korma? Since joining this site, I haven't looked at the Korma in any great detail and have never made a Pasanda.
What is it your mainly worried about in the final cook? As long as you map out what needs to be done and don't cook on too high a heat, you should be fine. Perhaps you just need to familiarise yourself with the technique and recipes a little more.
Did you have a look at the video link I posted? It's very helpful.
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There is a recipe in the KD1 cookbook, Don't know what it's like though, never tried it, but as your using the KD1 base should be OK
Download here
http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5587.0 (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5587.0)
If you can't get it I can post the recipe here for you if you want
What the Hell, I'll post it anyway ;D
Lamb Pasanda
The lamb for this dish will need to be prepared in advance as it requires marinating. Will serve three or four.
Preparation and cooking time: 35-40 minutes.
1 lb (450g) lean lamb
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup plain yoghurt
4 tablespoon vegetable oil
3/4 pint (425ml or three cups) curry sauce (page 20)
1 teaspoon each, salt and paprika
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cummin
1 tablespoon roughly chopped cashew nuts (optional)
4 tablespoon double cream
1 tablespoon finely chopped green coriander
Wash the meat and cut into slices about a 1/4 inch (0.5cm) thick and three inches (7.5cm) by two inches (5cm). Boil in salted water for 15 minutes until the meat is tender.
Mix the yoghurt and the salt in a bowl and put in the meat slices whilst still hot. Stir, coating the meat well and marinate for at least two hours or up to 24 hours.
Heat the oil in a large deep frying pan, pour in the sauce and bring it to the boil. Stir in the salt and paprika and cook on high heat for five minutes stirring frequently.
Now turn down the heat and stir in the garam masala, cummin, and nuts. Also add the meat, shaking off as much of the yoghurt as you can. Stir and simmer for five minutes or so.
Spoon off any oil and stir in the cream and half the coriander. Simmer for a minute.
Sprinkle the remaining coriander on top just before serving.
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The question marks in the previous message represent 1/2, 3/4 and 1/2 respectively.
** Phil.
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The question marks in the previous message represent 1/2, 3/4 and 1/2 respectively.
** Phil.
Thanks Phil
Dont know why it does that, I've put it right now.
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I missed one :( There is a fourth, in the in-line prose, and it represents 1/4.
The problem usually occurs if you try to insert a "real" fraction (by, for example, copying from a PDF with real fractions in the font used) and then paste it into this forum. It normally looks fine on preview but mutates into a question mark when it is finally posted.
** Phil.
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I missed one :( There is a fourth, in the in-line prose, and it represents 1/4.
The problem usually occurs if you try to insert a "real" fraction (by, for example, copying from a PDF with real fractions in the font used) and then paste it into this forum. It normally looks fine on preview but mutates into a question mark when it is finally posted.
** Phil.
Well spotted that man, changed that one as well ::) Must remember to check in future
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It normally looks fine on preview but mutates into a question mark
Those pesky mutants! >:(
Oh and Dave, I always thought it was Ootidee (ooo-tee-dee), but having now played it back over and over and listening to it intently, I stand corrected.
May the force be with you. ;)
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Welcome to the forum ootini and if I may chuck in my tuppence worth with the other curry heads.
Are you doing one portion of each curry? If you are planing on cooking a bigger size of each dish then the best way is to cook them individually and then combine them, e.g. in a casserole dish or pot - you wont get good results trying to do 4 Madras dishes in one go.
The other thing I was thinking is that I am sceptical that the BIR Pasanda is cooked in yoghurt - I would suggest it is simply a Korma with different additions at the end - I'm thinking of cashew nuts for example but this may vary geographically.
Steve
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Hi ootini
It might be worth having a go at making at least one of your curries on Friday, after you have your pre-cooked meats or veg done.
As it's going to be your first attempt at making BIR curries, it should help you get the feel and techniques sorted first, especially before attempting four different curries in one go.
If it goes wrong, nothing lost, you'll learn from it, try again.
If it works out fine, you could keep it, and re-heat it in your pan on saturday (adding a little moe gravy/base or water)
As a relative newbie myself, I think I'd find trying to cook four different BIR curries on one night quite daunting, and could get really confusing (unless you get really, really well organised first).
Cheers
Martin
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Hi Dave
Best of luck to you, you'll have good fun cooking the curries, even if they don't taste perfect. A couple of newbie mistakes that I first made:
1) Use the right sized pan, something small, ideally 20cm - 24cm. Any larger and the cooking methods don't seem to work.
2) If you are using ghee, use it very sparingly. I ruined 6 hours work on a meal by treating the stuff like butter. Everything ended up tasting like rancid cheese.
3) Even with everything pre-cooked you should start cooking an hour before you want to eat. Make sure everything else is ready (rice / side dishes). For your first time you should consider a supermarket pilau rice you can just stick in the microwave.
4) Less is definitely more with the spices. Indian cooking isn't like English or Italian cooking where you can add extra ingredients to ramp up the taste. With Indian cooking, if a recipe suggests half a tsp of something, make sure that's all you add. A slight spice imbalance can ruin what would have been a tasty dish.
5) Cook the garlic and spices for longer than you think. Brown is ideal, black is ruined.
6) You will find cooking much easier after 2 cans of Stella, but then much harder after 5!
7) Remember, keep your expectations low. You'll get better with every curry you cook so the first one is always going to be the worst. Watch all the videos and read as many comments as possible, in other words try and learn from our many many mistakes.
Chris
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For your first time you should consider a supermarket pilau rice you can just stick in the microwave.
I feel worried about that idea -- there are so many rubbish pilaus out there in supermarkets that unless Dave has time to test his selected one first, this could compromise the quality of the meal. IMHO, if you want to save time. let your local BIR T/A prepare and sell you the pilau rice -- at least they know how it is supposed to taste ! Oh, and Dave : frozen paratha are a life saver -- stick some in the freezer, and if you try to make pilau rice and it fails, you can always fall back on the paratha !
** Phil.
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For your first time you should consider a supermarket pilau rice you can just stick in the microwave.
I feel worried about that idea -- there are so many rubbish pilaus out there in supermarkets that unless Dave has time to test his selected one first, this could compromise the quality of the meal. IMHO, if you want to save time. let your local BIR T/A prepare and sell you the pilau rice -- at least they know how it is supposed to taste ! Oh, and Dave : frozen parathas are a life saver -- stick some in the freezer, and if you try to make pilau rice and it fails, you can always fall back on the paratha !
** Phil.
Phil do you make your parathas or buy them?
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Phil do you make your parathas or buy them?
Buy buy buy ;D Bulk catering packs, 20 per pack, dirt cheap, so fast and reliable.
** Phil.
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hi ootini
check out micks blogspot here http://cbm-mick.blogspot.com/ (http://cbm-mick.blogspot.com/) he has some great vids to whet you appetite. and he ahs a base sauce recipe on there as well as many vids from inside restaurant kitchens.
btw welcome
regards
gary :)
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Thanks for that, nice to hear a live version of "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd too!
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Check out the LeSpice Jalfrezi whilst your on CMB's Blog, it's a cracking dish indeed. :)
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Trying an experiment this evening : KD1 base prepared in a pressure cooker without pre-liquidising the garlic and ginger. My theory is that the pressure cooker will obviate the need for pre-liquidising, and I have chucked in one red and one green pepper for good measure, simply because I had them to hand and they were in danger of being wasted. I have increased the water content from 2 3/4 pints to 3 pints to compensate for the extra vegetables.
Continuation here (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5669.msg56145;topicseen#msg56145).
** Phil.
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Welcome ootini
Here's my Lamb Pasanda recipe, tried and tested and unchanged for over 30years.
If you can follow the recipe closely, you will get a good result. ;)
Chewytikkas
Old School Lamb Pasanda
Ingredients:-
2 tbsp of Butter Ghee
0.5 tsp G&G paste
0.5 tsp curry powder
a pinch of salt
2 tbsp Almond powder
2 tbsp Poppy seeds (Khus Khus)
6 tbsps fresh single cream
4 tbsps plain yoghurt
Portion of heated curry base sauce
Method:-
Heat Butter Ghee (medium heat)
Quickly add:-
0.5 tsp G&G paste
0.5 tsp curry powder
a pinch of salt
Stir/mix well then add:-
2 tbsp Almond powder
2 tbsp Poppy seeds (Khus Khus)
Stir/mix well then add:-
pre-cooked Lamb
Stir/mix well then add:-
6 tbsps fresh single cream
4 tbsps plain yoghurt
Stir/mix well then add:-
Portion of heated curry base sauce.
Cook on medium/high heat until the Lamb is cooked
through and the sauce thickens (5-6 minutes - ish)
Garnish Pasanda with flaked Almonds.
Cheers and have fun :)
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Hi Dave,
My advice,
Rice
Precook your rice, then freeze it. When you ready, pop it in the microwave for 2 mins on full, give it a stir, then blast for another min on full (based on a 950w m/wave) For me, this helps really separate the grains perfectly and produces excellent restaurant standard rice.
Precooked meat/veg/chicken
Choose your preferred method, and again freeze it. Add it to the final dish just before you add your base sauce. The reason I do it this way, especially for chicken is, It stops the chicken from over cooking. If you think about it, you will probably precook your chicken for about 15 mins max, if you were to then add the chicken to your curry, you would be cooking it even further, perhaps another 8 minutes? That's 23 mins all in all, way too long for a bite size piece in my opinion.
Final dish (curry)
If each of your dishes are to serve 2-3 guest, cook each curry individually and then transfer each portion of the same curry to a larger pot. I would only be tempted to keep warm in the oven if you will be serving all the dishes in less than an hour from when you commenced cooking. Otherwise, say, if you started at lunch time, transfer to a larger pot, then reheat slowly in the oven about 40 mins before you serve.
My final piece of advice is possibly the most crucial;
Cooking for guest's should be fun and entertaining. If you leave yourself short of time, you WIL panic and rush things a touch. Now your guest's will almost certainly be amazed by your food but you will definitely feel somewhat disappointed, feeling that you could have done better. If you prepare well, well in advance, this should keep you calm and relaxed, and you will enjoy the evening as much as your guest's.
I would definitely take Martins advice. Give yourself a trial run on Friday night, that way, you will no what to tweak when it comes to the real thing. Like Chris says, keep your expectations low, that way, you will be overjoyed when you taste the dish.
All the very best of luck Dave,
Keep us posted and if you feel the need, keep asking questions, we're all here to help mate.
Ray :)
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Ray offers excellent advice, as always, and there are just two places where he and I might differ slightly :
Rice
Precook your rice, then freeze it.
I find that rice grains tend to "explode" when you freeze them, because of the expansion of the water they have absorbed during cooking. I would certainly go along with pre-cooking and microwaving before serving, but I would chill, not freeze, in between.
Precooked meat/veg/chicken
Choose your preferred method, and again freeze it. Add it to the final dish just before you add your base sauce. The reason I do it this way, especially for chicken is, It stops the chicken from over cooking. If you think about it, you will probably precook your chicken for about 15 mins max, if you were to then add the chicken to your curry, you would be cooking it even further, perhaps another 8 minutes? That's 23 mins all in all, way too long for a bite size piece in my opinion.
I pre-cook my chicken for a maximum of ten minutes, and then chill, not freeze. No particular reason for this, just the way I do things. I also cut my chicken pieces on the large side, so there is less risk of them overcooking.
** Phil.
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Hi Phil,
Exploding Rice Ice..........I can't say I've ever experienced that.
Mick
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Hi Phil,
Exploding Rice Ice..........I can't say I've ever experienced that.
Mick
Interesting ! It has certainly happened to mine, which why I no longer freeze it; I wonder what the difference might be ?
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Progress report :
After about an hour and a half at full pressure, the onion, garlic, ginger and peppers were still clearly distinct; using a stick blender, these were then homogenised and the resulting liquid tasted. It has a pleasant, vegetable-ey taste with a trace of a sharp edge. What was very noticeable is that there was no unpleasant onion-ey smell at all at any point during the cooking.
Next stage involved the integration of the oil, tomato, turmeric and paprika, after which I stick-blended it again just for the hell of it.
Then to the final dish, a variant of Chicken Madras KD1/PT :
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3/4 pint base sauce
- 8 oz pre-cooked Chicken
- 1 teaspoon Bassar Curry Masala (for flavour)
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri Mirch (for colour)
- 1 teaspoon Degghi Mirch (for heat)
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Methi leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon Chat Masala (to add a slight touch of sourness)
- 1/8 Lime, whole
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Coriander stalk
- A little chopped fresh Coriander leaf for garnish
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Hi Phil,
Exploding Rice Ice..........I can't say I've ever experienced that.
Mick
Interesting ! It has certainly happened to mine, which why I no longer freeze it; I wonder what the difference might be ?
I'm not sure but I know I cook my rice to the point where there is still some resistance when squeezed between finger and thumb, how long do you cook your rice ?
I've just noticed your "beware the trolls of March" comment. I assume you are talking about the month and not the town of March.....or am I missing something??
Please let me know ;)
Mick
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I'm not sure but I know I cook my rice to the point where there is still some resistance when squeezed between finger and thumb, how long do you cook your rice ?
I can only answer that with any accuracy for Chinese rice for frying, since I don't actually have any specific times for pilau rice; for Chinese rice for frying, it is 12 minutes at full power (in a microwave oven, in a pyrex casserole with lid) and then 20 minutes at very low power just to drive off any residual moisture. Pilau rice is far more experimental as far as I am concerned, and I have neither fixed recipe nor fixed times for it.
I've just noticed your "beware the trolls of March" comment. I assume you are talking about the month and not the town of March.....or am I missing something??
Please let me know ;)
I didn't think there was a town called March anywhere near Rome, so when Caesar's soothsayer said "Beware the Ides of March" I think he must have been speaking of the month dedicated to Mars. Certainly I am ;D But as this forum has been blissfully free of trolling for a while now, I shall remove the offending line.
** Phil.
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Guys I just wanna say how much I appreciate the help you're giving me! I'm definitely more confident about what I'm planning now.
Phil, don't worry about the hi-jack and you've definitely inspired me, that looks bloody lovely. And as such, I've decided precooking chicken, lamb, veg and beef is simply going to be too much work for me to be able to relax and enjoy myself and actually get it all done. So I'm going to precook a little more chicken and drop the beef. This I think will give me a little more flexibility.
The basic plan is to produce four, single portion curries, and then allow each person, basically a quarter of each to sample, or fight over the one they like most. I might the portions slightly on the large size but I don't see this being too much of an issue.
Just out of interest, as a rule of thumb roughly how much base sauce (KD1 or other) is required for each single portion curry?
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Progress report :
After about an hour and a half at full pressure, the onion, garlic, ginger and peppers were still clearly distinct; using a stick blender, these were then homogenised and the resulting liquid tasted. It has a pleasant, vegetable-ey taste with a trace of a sharp edge. What was very noticeable is that there was no unpleasant onion-ey smell at all at any point during the cooking.
Next stage involved the integration of the oil, tomato, turmeric and paprika, after which I stick-blended it again just for the hell of it.
Then to the final dish, a variant of Chicken Madras KD1/PT :
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3/4 pint base sauce
- 8 oz pre-cooked Chicken
- 1 teaspoon Bassar Curry Masala (for flavour)
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri Mirch (for colour)
- 1 teaspoon Degghi Mirch (for heat)
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Methi leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon Chat Masala (to add a slight touch of sourness)
- 1/8 Lime, whole
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Coriander stalk
- A little chopped fresh Coriander leaf for garnish
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Phil, don't worry about the hi-jack and you've definitely inspired me, that looks bloody lovely.
Thank you !
Just out of interest, as a rule of thumb roughly how much base sauce (KD1 or other) is required for each single portion curry?
I normally cook enough for two (what you see in the photograph is what was left after I had eaten as much as I wanted : Khanh was not home to eat this evening), and for that I use 3/4 pint base and 8oz pre-cooked chicken. To be honest, I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending that you halve everything. simply because I cannot guarantee that it will work : better, maybe, to make what I regard as a standard double portion, and enjoy any leftovers on another day !
** Phil.
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@phil - Lovely looking curry there :) very nice indeed! - you did't say how good it tasted though?
It tasted absolutely right, and confirmed my belief (sorry, I'm about to offend some forum members) that all this faffing about making and then reducing the Taz base is just not necessary -- I get far better results using the KD1 base (modified, on this occasion) and I really feel in control, whereas with the Taz base I feel it's controlling me. Whether KD1 will also work for vegetable dishes remains to be seen : certainly those I have cooked with the Taz base have been good, and it will be interesting to see on my next foray into Sag Aloo whether the KD1-modified base will work as well. I'll move copies of the base and Madras recipes to the proper thread, so they can be more easily found in future.
** Phil.
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Phil
Have you ever made any of the KD recipes out of the book? If you have, what did you think of them. Just been looking at her recipes and i would think they where a little bland, But there again she ran a restaurant and not a Takeaway, could be why no spice mix in the book i suppose, using freshly ground spices may give a better taste than a mix,
HS
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With regards to portion control, this is quite new to me. I assume that a single chicken breast, chopped into 6/8 would be considered the right amount of meat for a single portion? And similarly 6/8 cubes of lamb would be a single portion?
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Phil
Have you ever made any of the KD recipes out of the book? If you have, what did you think of them.
Yes, her recipes are my inspiration for Chicken Madras, Chicken Tikka and Tandoori Chicken. None, as far as I am concerned, are perfect if you simply follow them without thinking, but if you use them as a starting point and then adjust them on the basis of experience and your own insights, I find they work very well indeed. My basic modification to her Chicken Madras, for example, is to double the quantity of base per unit weight of meat, and to double the quantity of spices per unit volume of base, so I end up with twice as much base and four times as much spice as she recommends -- "your mileage might vary", as they say ...
Just been looking at her recipes and i would think they where a little bland, But there again she ran a restaurant and not a Takeaway, could be why no spice mix in the book i suppose, using freshly ground spices may give a better taste than a mix
I will be honest, I have never understood why so many recipes use spice mix and/or curry powder. With the former, all you are doing is adding standardised quantities of spices you already have; with the latter, you are virtually adding a complete unknown. Far better, IMHO, to add each spice as needed; OK, if A, B & C all go in at the same time, then pre-mix them in a little tub to speed up preparation, but don't make up a jarful for later use because you then won't be able to adjust the proportions in the light of experience.
There is one benefit to spice mix that perhaps I shouldn't ignore; suppose that a given recipe needs 1 teaspoon of a particular spice mix, and that spice mix contains 5 spices A, B, C, D, E in the proportion 5:4:4:2:1. It is very easy to dip your measuring spoon in a well-shaken jar of the mix, and bring out exactly what is needed for the dish; it would be extraordinarily difficult, without using an analytical balance and a great deal of time, to add individually 1/3 tsp A, 4/15 tsp B, 4/15 tsp C, 2/15 tsp D and 1/15 tsp E. So a spice mix for a particular dish makes sense to me; a generic spice mix, to be added in different amounts to virtually everything, makes little or no sense at all.
My two penn'orth, for what it's worth (very little, these days !).
** Phil.
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With regards to portion control, this is quite new to me. I assume that a single chicken breast, chopped into 6/8 would be considered the right amount of meat for a single portion? And similarly 6/8 cubes of lamb would be a single portion?
Sounds about right to me, but of course breasts can very considerably in size ("Johnson minor, stop sniggering at the back of the class !"). I like to buy large free-range birds, and would normally expect to be able to cut ten decent size pieces from one breast, which would then be enough for a good-size portion for two (I use the whole bird, so in practice each portion might contain breast, thigh, leg, back and maybe wing); if you buy a smaller bird, then I imagine one breast would produce a large portion for one but a small portion for two.
** Phil.
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I was actually gonna totally cop out and hit Tescos for four fillets in a pack. Does this make an evil dirty person?
:o
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I was actually gonna totally cop out and hit Tescos for four fillets in a pack. Does this make an evil dirty person?
:o
You'll wake up in the middle of the night, screaming "I shouldn't have done that !" ;D
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...snip
I will be honest, I have never understood why so many recipes use spice mix and/or curry powder.
snip...
Phil, I hear what you are saying, and perhaps at home when one may have extra time, this fine tuning could produce results perfectly tuned to your personal tastes...
However surely a busy BIR would not have time to mess around with individual spices and therefore through speed necessity have to come up with a generic general mix that they can quickly use? - plus slight variations in the mix add their own signature etc.
To replicate BIR at home, I imagine that is why so many recipies call for a mix, as that is what most BIR's use?
Cheers :)
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Surely a busy BIR would not have time to mess around with individual spices and therefore through speed necessity have to come up with a generic general mix that they can quickly use? - plus slight variations in the mix add their own signature etc.
To replicate BIR at home, I imagine that is why so many recipes call for a mix, as that is what most BIR's use?
I agree :) And perhaps this lies at the heart of the fact that is a never-ending quest, because the spice mix that Ray's favourite T/A uses is unlikely to be the same as that used in the Taj of Kent, or in your favourite restaurant, or whatever. So we end up chasing our tails, and are doomed to continue doing so for all eternity :(
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So I should just end it all, before I even start...............*BANG* *THUD*.
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Thanks for the reply Phil
I agree with you on the mix issue,
I do think by using a fixed spice mix all the Curry's tend to have the same underlying flavour be it bhuna or Madras, it may be mild or hot but all the same underneath.
If you want restaurant quality then fresh is the way to go in my humble opinion, (now I'm about to get shot down)
You only have to look at Dip's videos to see that there ain't much difference in the whole range of curry's that he does.
HS
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If you want restaurant quality then fresh is the way to go in my humble opinion, (now I'm about to get shot down)
Not by me, buddy ! But to put things in perspective, I can see no problem with a recipe specifying (say) "1 teaspoon Hotstuff's Spice Mix No. 3", because that is a specific blend of spices in specific proportions, perhaps suited to several different dishes but by no means all; but "1 teaspoon mix powder" tells us nothing at all, and almost certainly leads to different results being reported by different testers. Of course, "Hotstuff's Spice Mix No. 3" cannot include any generic elements such as "Mild curry powder" because that would once again introduce an unwanted degree of freedom, and ideally should specify (as should all the recipes) as precise a description of each spice as possible (e.g., "1 teaspoon MDH Degghi Mirch" rather than "1 teaspoon ground chillies").
What do others think ?
** Phil.
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This is something that I have considered every since the day I stepped foot in the IG. Returning to here and reading up on base, spice mix, tomato puree, etc. and based on the information I had gleaned from my first visit, I concluded that it would be fool hardy for me to think I would succeed in creating an IG dish, using a different spice mix, base and so on.
Each an every component used must match the same components used in the restaurant. Like garam masala or curry powder, saying "any good one will do" can work to a degree, but it will never match exactly.
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Phil,
I hear what you say with regards to a generic spice mix but like the base, this is just a 'foundation' ingredient. Yes, it will leave it's 'signature' on a range of dishes from one particular establishment but it is all the other additions that change the actual flavour!
However, the variables/permutations are endless for example;
200ml base
garlic and ginger paste, 50/50
2 tsp spice mix
1 tsp methi
1 tbs tomato puree
Will taste quite different to:
300ml base
garlic and ginger paste, 70/30
1 tsp spice mix
1.5 tsp methi
2 tbs tomato puree.
Same ingredients, just combined quite differently! I know some may disagree but for the most part BIR curries are 'formula' dishes. A bit more of this, a little less of that, add this, leave that out and so on, all produce a different dish.
Even varying the length of time you take to cook your dish will alter the taste somewhat, even if using the same ingredients. Hopefully, our BIR chefs are skilled enough to play around with the combinations and produce very good dishes, albeit with their special stamp on the dish which could be attributed to their 'secret' spice mix?
Just my thoughts 8)
Ray :)
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I don't disagree, but ...
If five of we CR0 members were to make a dish according to your first recipe :
200ml base
1 tablespoon garlic and ginger paste, 50/50
2 tsp spice mix
1 tsp methi
1 tbs tomato puree
is the probability not very high that we would produce five significantly different dishes, even leaving aside issues such as technique ? There are two very significant degrees of freedom (which base ? which spice mix ?) and a number of lesser ones (does the spice mix include "curry powder", as so many do, and if so, which one ? Is the methi leaves or powder ? Is the tomato pur
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Arr Phil,
I think you have taken my example too literally, or I've not explained myself well.
The examples I give are all the same ingredients just combined very differently. It doesn't matter which base sauce or spice blend you prefer, just as long as they were the same spice blend and base sauce for all of your dishes. It's the additions/omissions that will alter the flavour.
Of course, the home cook can afford to be far more technical/particular than the BIR chef and use 'better' ingredients or be more specific with their spice mix for certain dishes but with that approach, you run the risk of moving away from the BIR taste, rather than getting closer.
Again, just my humble opinion ::)
Ray :)
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It's the additions/omissions that will alter the flavour.
Agreed.
Of course, the home cook can afford to be far more technical/particular than the BIR chef and use 'better' ingredients or be more specific with their spice mix for certain dishes but with that approach, you run the risk of moving away from the BIR taste, rather than getting closer.
I genuinely can't see how, Ray. All I am trying to do is replace unknowns and variables with fixed points : surely if those fixed points are correct, the results will be identical to that which you are trying to re-create, will they not ?
** Phil.
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Phil,
I totally get what you are trying to do, and commend you for that. Anything that gets you closer to what you are used to is great.
I think what I'm saying is, to truly achieve BIR, we need to closely follow BIR practice where it is practical to do so. Just the fact that we all use a base sauce because we know that it takes us closer to BIR, is testimony to that. Let's not forget, your 'BIR' may well be very different to my 'BIR', making your twist on things very relevant to you.
With that said, I have done certain things which are not 'BIR' but had great results nonetheless (see thread title)
It's all good Phil, I bet poor Ootini's heads spinning now ;D
Ray :)
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It's all good Phil, I bet poor Ootini's heads spinning now ;D
I'm certain he wishes he had never joined !
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my head is spinning too lol ;D
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;D ;D
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Hey guys, I've read Axe's recommendation on precooking the veg but there's no mention of a method. Do you simply fry off the spices for a minute or so with onions and ginger/garlic, then add veg and water? how long should I boil it for? I'm planning on doing green beans and cauliflower i think.
Thanks
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Hi Dave,
The method is simlar to the potato shown here: Pre-cook Potato (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=5537.msg54396#msg54396)
Essentially in with the oil, fry the onions with hard spices, then add powdered spices and cook to release aromas, then add the veg and water.
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And I am happy to confirm that the end results are outstanding (using Exquisa potatoes, at least).
** Phil.
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Bonza, cheers! Base sauce and precook meat tonight. Precook veg tomorrow morning. I'm cheating on the rice (don't ask). Salad and breads just before the curries get "built" and dig in. It's bound to go totally tits up but hey ho! ;D
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Are you planning to serve popaddom as a starter, Dave ? If so, don't forget to allow them an extra 20 minutes or so in a warm oven (80C) to dry off and crisp up.
** Phil.