Topic: Curry Base and Madras Recipes (from Spice as Nice)

[joshallen2k]

Hmm. I'm still getting a reduction factor of 8%.

The correct max volume of my pot is 7.07 liters (which makes better sense), and the max volume of the chef's pot is 89 liters.

7.07 into 89 gives me 8%.

In which case, wouldn't my scaled down recipe hold?

[Spice-as-Nice]

It was CHILLI , Not curry powder.
I asked him was it spices in the base , he said NO .
When he said "Chilli Powder " I repeated it to him and he said yes Chilli Powder.
Im'e quite clear on that.
When we moved ove to the gas rings:
I asked him more than once " do you use mixed spices ? "  He said no.
All his spices are in seperate tubs just above the gas rings. inc sugar and salt.
Other stuff is in a tall glass fronted freezer next to the gas rings ( err - well it is a small area ) I saw in there , Coriander, Cream, Yogurt, Tomato's, Green Peppers and other stuff , Ill have another look and ask him next time.
Im'e going in there with the video camera . Don't worry I havn't done in there yet.
I'll check up on the measures too , and that spoon . I'll video it and put something for reference next to it.
Theres about 6 men in there + delivery driver + a pizza man ( English guy ).
All the Asians are from Pakistan and live in Huddersfield , so they have about 3/4 hr drive every day to get to work.

[jimmy2x]

cant wait for someone to try this, well done op, perhaps we will get the real bir taste after alL. Then we can all stop debating and go home hehe.

im a bit confused however on you refering to a curry as medium and not say a madras or vindaloo ie the usual way.

Also most of these restaurants are run by bangledeshi's think its quite un-usual to have pakistanis cooking in them. I wonder if this will impact on the desired final product.

I dont have the time this weekend to have a go at the base its a busy xmas shopping weekend and i will be spending a fair bit of it driving and then being dragged around shops in the city. (150 miles and 3 hour ferry ride each way for me to get anymore shopping than a bag of sheep feed and a bag of peat) hence hurry up someone and have a crack at it and report back, im staying overnight in a travel lodge so will log on and keep up on this exciting development.

best wishes.

[currymonster]

OK, I'm going to take a stab at reducing this.

My pot that I cook base in is 10"x5.5"

I calculated that my pot has a maximum of 28 liters capacity. I used this site: http://www.aqua-calc.com/calc_volcyl.php

The chef's pot has a max capacity of 355 liters, so I used a scale-down factor of 8%

I could comfortably fit 1.6 kg of onions into this pot without it being too crowded, so I came up with the following:

1.6 kg onions
16 ml chilli
16 ml salt
4 ml tomato puree
16ml oil

Does this look right to anyone?

Spice-as-Nice - are you positive it was Chilli powder, not curry powder?

If some others could take a quick look at my math and logic, I would highly appreciate it!

-- Josh

The base =
Onions Boiled in a pan 2ft across and 1ft deep , for 2 hours
Nothing else added.
After boiling
4 chefs spoons of chilli powder ( in my opinion on the spoon it would be 2.5 cups total qty )
4 chefs spoons of salt
1 chefs spoons of tomato puree
4 chefs spoons of oil
After this is added blend with blender
Bring back to boil , simer for 1/2 to 1 hour.
Let cool , oil will come to top , scoop off and discard ( its thrown away )

Josh,

Turns out my base pan is exactly the same size as yours, 10" x 5.5". So, I checked your calculations. The onions and water are going to be a bit of a guess but I'll go with the 1.6kg you suggested. The exact figures i got for an 8% reduction in the other ingredients were:

19.2ml Chilli Powder
19.2ml Salt
4.8ml Tomato Puree
19.2ml Oil

CM

[JerryM]

It was CHILLI , Not curry powder.
I asked him was it spices in the base , he said NO .
I asked him more than once " do you use mixed spices ? "  He said no.
All his spices are in separate tubs just above the gas rings. inc sugar and salt.
Other stuff is in a tall glass fronted freezer next to the gas rings ( err - well it is a small area ) I saw in there , Coriander, Cream, Yogurt, Tomato's, Green Peppers and other stuff , Ill have another look and ask him next time.

Spice as Nice,

real good stuff - confirmation of no gaps is where i am.

the malik 8 tubs were said to be: coconut flour, sugar, coriander, chill, curry powder, cumin, methi, salt. the only dodgy one for me is the curry powder which is perhaps turmeric - the rest sit fine for a place that does not use mix powder (otherwise mix powder would have to be on the shelf). u're place is of real interest as they are clearly not using spice in the base. it will be interesting to see how they get the depth and balance of spice which is normally done in the base.

the chef at my local TA does use mix powder but will not talk about it - it's their special mix. he seems to add other spices at frying but it's impossible to see/work out what's being added - your report will be real interesting.

your place appears (i think) well matched to their market in terms of being commercial - the simple base. it reminds me of KD1 which was where i started my journey.

all the best.

[joshallen2k]

Josh,

Turns out my base pan is exactly the same size as yours, 10" x 5.5". So, I checked your calculations. The onions and water are going to be a bit of a guess but I'll go with the 1.6kg you suggested. The exact figures i got for an 8% reduction in the other ingredients were:

19.2ml Chilli Powder
19.2ml Salt
4.8ml Tomato Puree
19.2ml Oil

CM

Thanks for double-checking my math CM.

I've got the onions boiling now. In the end I went with 1.5kg in the pot.

I will report back later on how this turns out.

-- Josh

[Spice-as-Nice]

Note: The finished base in the pan after blending and topping up with water to his "soft mushy pea consistency , will run off a tilted spoon", was 2/3rds full in the pan.

[joshallen2k]

Thanks for the pointer Spice-as-Nice.

I'm just about finished the two hour boil, and I was wondering about water top-up, since a lot of water has evaporated off.

-- Josh

[joshallen2k]

The base is on its final simmer now. The colour I can only describe as pinkish-rose. I guess that's understandable given the puree and chilli are the only colorants.

To the taste, the base definitely has a bite to it from the chilli. I do wonder if this would make a versatile base for something like a Korma.

Will have to wait and see I guess.

[currymonster]

Josh,

It seems we both had the same idea. I just finished eating a Madras made with this base and using some of the technique mentioned by Spice-N-Nice.

For the base I used:

1.6kg Onions (peeled weight)
20ml Deggi Mirch
20ml Salt
5ml Tomato Puree
20ml Oil

I boiled the onions in enough water to cover them for 2 hours. Took the base off the heat, added the other ingredients and blended it until smooth.

For the Madras I used:

2tbsp Oil
5ml Tomato Puree mixed with 5ml water
2tsp Cumin
2tsp Coriander
1tsp Extra Hot Chilli Powder
240ml Base (4 chefs spoons)
50ml Water

I heated the oil and then fried the Tomato Puree for about 30 secs. I took the pan off the heat and added the Chili Powder and fried for another 30secs. I put the pan back on the heat and added the base and added the other spices and the water and boiled it rapidly. After about 10 mins it was ready.

Tasted nice I would certainly be satisfied buying this from an average BIR, it was a basic no frills Madras. I was quite surprised at how well such a basic base can perform, the base itself tasted like Vegetable and Tomato Soup with Chili in it, no suprises there  I'd make it again because I like the variety a basic base can give.


Heres the pictures:

Base after boiling and adding other ingredients



Base after blending



The Madras



Served