Topic: Fermented gravy

[Dylan]

I have often wondered why take away / restaurant curry can sometimes give you a dicky belly, while the ones cooked at home don't do this. I think it might well be that their gravy base could be hanging around for a few days, i.e fermenting.
 I made a base on Monday, then left it until Wednesday morning before cooking a few curries. Though it hadn't started visibly fermenting flavor had noticeably improved (had a sour tang to it). I think its an important factor in the missing taste. Unfortunately, I didn't add enough oil to the gravy that there was enough to pour back into the base at the completion of each dish. I don't presently have a gas hob either, so I'm missing the flamed taste. Nevertheless, this is the closest I've been.
 We know that most restaurants make their base sauce at least a day in advance. I can't believe they refrigerate it as the quantities are just too large. ( I doubt they'd be forthcoming in admitting this habit though, as it would flout food safety guidelines).

[Curry King]

Ive seen takeaways that make their gravy up the night before yet other resturants I know for a fact make it the afternoon before the night its going to be used.? The thing is the quantities of curry that they make with the gravy would suggest that its not going to be around for days at a time and that the fermented taste comes from putting old oil and dirty spoons in the gravy pot?

[Dylan]

I wonder if old gravy is just topped up with new batches. I knew someone who worked in a buffet style cafe. They served all day breakfasts and he claimed the baked bean trough was never cleaned out - it was just topped with fresh beans when it got a bit low. He said this was common practice.