Hahaha, this poor chef has no idea what he's in for!!! He'll wish he'd never met you when this is over  ;D

Yeh you're probably right Bobby - but I hope not.

At the moment I get the impression that Raj appreciates someone actually taking a genuine interest in what he does best!

Today was our company Christmas lunch which, you guessed it, was in my favourite Indian restaurant in Lincoln.

Raj is the manager and head chef of the Saffron - a really great guy and a great restaurant. He also instructs the other three chefs and they in turn stick to his recipes to ensure consistency.

Today I asked him for a tour of the kitchen and would he teach me a few things about BIR cooling. Well not only did he agree, but offered to come round to my house for a one to one tuition (I offered to pay but he declined).

This will now be arranged for after the Christmas period. He has also asked me if I would like to go into the kitchens for an all day session on a Saturday (when they're at their busiest) so I can watch them make the gravy and the individual curries. Great eh?

Anyway, back to today - the Kitchen tour. Well here's a few facts that left be gobsmacked.

1) The BIR taste can never be achieved by freezing the curry gravy. He tells me that whilst some restaurants keep their gravy for up to 3 days (not frozen), after only 24 hours the gravy will lose it's flavour and darken. It should always be used fresh. He agrees that a completed curry dish can improve in flavour when frozen - but definitely not the gravy.

2) The gravy comprises onions, garlic & ginger puree, green pepper, tinned tomatoes, a little of the four main spices, water and oil. Nothing else. It goes through two cooking processes.

3) Never use Spanish onions or king size onions, they are too sweet. Only use medium size cooking onions.

4) The majority of recipes come from the one curry gravy, but there are three used to cover all recipes.

5) Garam masala is not used in the majority of dishes and never used in fish or shellfish dishes.

6) Only spices used in varying quantities for majority of dishes are coriander, cumin, turmeric and chilli. No other spices are used in the majority of dishes.

7) Only other ingredients added in varying quantities are garlic & ginger puree, tomato puree, salt, lentil paste (dhansak) and fresh coriander ... and of course the gravy.

Now the gobsmack ... It is not necessary to use a prepared gravy to achieve the BIR taste. ... and according to Raj, a better BIR taste can be achieved without using a gravy.

I will be arranging an all day session some time in January. If there are any specific questions (not too difficult please) that you would like me to ask him then please post.
 
Regards
SNS

Anyone ever read the Tandoori magazine. Is it any good?

Thanks for that CA

Have you tries any of these recipes?

Regards
sns

I might have to try your recipe, like you, I like my bhunas and I like them wet  :

Hey Curry King

Did a prawn Bhuna last night using my base gravy with the same recipe (although I did add a little lemon juice and a little sugar). It was really nice (BIR - ish). Other half said it was actually better than our local takeaway. Dog didnt get any.

When do you plan on trying the recipes? I'd like to know what you think.

Best regards
smokenspices