That could well be the most beautiful thing in the world... I'll be trying this tonight. What base sauce did you go for in this cheeky little number?

Wow, that is bound to be so much better than my recipe. Oh well, back to the spice shop 

Quick question for you... I see that sometimes people use Fenugreek seeds in their recipe. What's your opinion on this?

Thanks for the pictures CA, makes a real difference!

Does anyone else know what I'm talking about? You saunter into a take away only to be delighted by the fact that it seems to be outstanding, as the place is teaming with awards. Then upon trying their curry, you discover that it's actually naff.

I have to conclude that there are an sizeable number of crap BIRs and take aways with fake/homemade awards. I mean who judges these things!!!

That is such a good question. In my experience, I far prefer the oily richness of a BIR curry. I have some indian friends and have asked them for their recipes and techniques an to be honest the results are never what I'm looking for.

Even if you speak to the guys who own/work in the spice shops, their recipes just aren't as self indulgent as the BIR. I can only suppose that in India, currys are dishes that you eat very often and so to use all the ingredients and go to the BIR lengths would be a real luxury. I have tried a couple of authentic recipes and the end products were pretty dry and uncomplicated.

This is my base sauce, which is a varyation/combination of those from several curry books and other sauce recipes I have found on the interent.
I have chosen to include my fresh Garram Masala spice blend in the recipe because I feel that this is fundamental to recipe. However, if you have your own spice blend, please feel free to use that.

Vegetable based ingredients:
4 medium sized onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2 medium sized tomatoes finely chopped (if you chop too coarsely the skins become a problem since they refuse to blend later)
Vegetable oil (I use quite a lot )
35 grams fresh peeled and rougly chopped Garlic (or the paste from the jar)
35 grams fresh peeled and roughly chopped Ginger (or the paste from the jar)
2 fresh chillis, chopped

Whole Spices:
Corriander seed
Cumin seed
Cloves
Cinemon Sticks
Nutmeg
Mustard Seed
Black Cardomom
Green Cardomom
Bay leave

Other Herbs / Spices:
Turmeric
Paprika
Tandoori Masala
Ground Cumin
Ground Fenugreek

To start, cover the bottom of your curry pan with around 3-5mm vegetable oil (the more the better but the unhealthier). Bring this to a reasonable heat (I use number 3 of 6) and add the chopped onions, followed by the chopped ginger and the chopped garlic. It is important that the pan is not too hot so as to brown the onions otherwise they become bitter rather than sweet.

Now add 1tsb paprika and 1 tsp turmeric and stir. Bring the temperature down and place the lid on your pan stirring occassionally and taking care not to let any of the ingredients brown or stick. Cook until the onions are translucent (this will take around 20 - 30 minutes).

Meanwhile we can prepare the spice mix. Put simply I make a Garram Masala, which you could buy in a bottle or pack. However, I have found that if you have access to the whole spices mentioned above and a coffee or spice grinder, the result is superior. If you do not have access to these, or simply want to save time and money it is perfectly reasonable to use the pre ground variety but try to ensure that it is fresh. From my own personal experience, don't buy the Bart brand. When I need some pre ground Garram Masala I read the ingredients on the back of the package, looking for them to be similar to my recipe.

So, into the grider go the following whole spices:

1 tsp Corriander seed
1 tsp Cumin seed
around 5 Cloves
around 1 inch of Cinemon Stick
1/4 small nutmeg
1 pinch Mustard Seed
4 large Black Cardomom
6 Green Cardomom
2 Bay Leaves

Grind this until the grinder stop making the little clicky sounds of seeds hitting the blade/edges and put the mix in a sealed container. It should be a fine powder. If not, grind grind and grind some more. For ultimate freshness try to use within a few weeks to ensure fullness of flavour. Smell the fresh Garram Masala and you will realise how much stronger it is than the bought kind.

By this point you onions are done. Add the chopped tomatoes, and chillis pop the lid back on and cook until the tomatoes have softened. The tomatoes should add some water to the mix but you may want to add more - perhaps around 50-100 ml, just to help mix the spices we are about to add.

Add 2 rounded tsp of the Garram Masala that we made (or your bought kind) to the mix and stir well. Add 1tsp ground cumin and fenugreek and 1 tsp of the pre purchased tandoori masala mix. Pop the lid back on and give it another 10 minutes or so to let the spices enfuse, stirring regularly.

Now get your hand blender out and give the whole lot a good blasting. Some like it very smooth, some like it almost lentil-like in consistency, for me it's just up to personal preference.

Well hope you guys enjoy my base sauce and good luck with the results. Feel free to ask any questions, or give me suggestions as to how I can improve my recipe, thanks, Rob.