Curry Recipes Online
Curry Chat => Lets Talk Curry => Topic started by: RubyDoo on February 12, 2013, 12:18 PM
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............... Do you prefer to use in base?
Read somewhere that English onions can make the base taste bitter. C2g recommends using Dutch or English yet also recognises that Restaurants will use Dutch where possible as they are sweeter. That said, Spanish onions are also meant to be sweeter than English.
Have you a preference regarding the origin of onions for base and if so is this due to then aforementioned supposed bitterness issue?
Apologies if this has already been covered but you can imagine what a search for 'onions' throws up. ( cannot see how to refine search parameters to search phrases ).
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I've tried using sweet Dutch onions and also the typical brown onions sold by Sainsburys which are quite strong. I don't recall much difference to the finished base or curries.
Probably the best bet to recreate BIR would be to buy a cheap sack of brown onions from an Asian cash'n'carry as that's what the BIRs would do.
Paul
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I've tried using sweet Dutch onions and also the typical brown onions sold by Sainsburys which are quite strong. I don't recall much difference to the finished base or curries.
Probably the best bet to recreate BIR would be to buy a cheap sack of brown onions from an Asian cash'n'carry as that's what the BIRs would do.
Paul
Thanks Paul but the large brown ones in Sainsburys are normally Spanish ;) the little brown ones I have had recently from Ocado have ( according to season ) recently been English and I have noticed a bitterness to some curries that I have masked with a little sugar. Now whether that is down to the onions ..........?
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I don't think the ones I bought from Sainsburys were Spanish.
To some degree you can tell from the shape as sweet onions tend to have a shape like a flattened tennis ball whereas the "strong" onions are closer to round.
In any case I hate paying
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I think a trip up Tooting Broadway may be in order to suss out what the 'locals' have in large sacks . ;)
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.... and then to put another cat amongst the pigeons I just read a new post on the Zaal base that lead me back to the recipe which states
Fill it just over three quarters full of chopped English / Dutch onions. Do not use milder Spanish onions.
Arghhhhhhhh ;D
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.... and then to put another cat amongst the pigeons I just read a new post on the Zaal base that lead me back to the recipe which states
Fill it just over three quarters full of chopped English / Dutch onions. Do not use milder Spanish onions.
Arghhhhhhhh ;D
Hi RubyDoo
I think the words "Do not use milder Spanish onions" is probably a bit extreme!
However, we quizzed Az over the onions and we were told that they recommend the English / Dutch onions and he did not recommend the Spanish ones and did not use them in his restaurant. He may have elaborated on the reasons and something along the lines of being too watery or too sweet rings bells but I'm not 100% on his reasons.
Thanks
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I think a trip up Tooting Broadway may be in order to suss out what the 'locals' have in large sacks . ;)
Be careful when you're there Ruby ;D :P
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2064984/ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2064984/)
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I think a trip up Tooting Broadway may be in order to suss out what the 'locals' have in large sacks . ;)
Be careful when you're there Ruby ;D :P
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2064984/ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2064984/)
Nah. Pussy cats in that part of the world. ;)
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Has anyone tried Red onions
I know they are dearer and probably not used in BIR
But in the book Rasoi by Vineet Bhatia (he ownes a Michelin star Restaurant in Chelsea)
He has a page on Pastes and Bases
He says he chops the onions and sweats them until they turn pink
now he doesn't say red onions but I cant think of any other onions he could be using unless a bit of food colouring ;D
But it does cross my mind when i see big sacks of red onions also in tooting( could be the missing ingredient :)
Just a thought
Michael
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Just had a quick look at the
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Most Asian households will use a type of red onion.
It was what i always used when living in London.
Spiceway was my local shop, Sri Lankan run.
Ahhhhhh, Mutton rolls. ... :P
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/128968a7c43c6cf44f9bbae2612b669c.jpg)
(if you've never tried one, imagine a findus crispy pancake with a dry mutton curry filling)
Frank. :)
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Has anyone tried Red onions.
I use them all the time for onion salad but regard them as something of a no-no for a base. They seem to take an eternity to break down, compared to brown onions which are my normal base type (farm shop, Lidl, Gurkha store, wherever).
** Phil.
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If I still had the choice of buying them locally and using them in a gravy, I might've given it a try myself. But i would only use the small Asian ones and not the standard reds from a major supermarket. I prefer the flavour. The amount of peeling is what would put me off using them regularly in a base, unless they made a significant difference to the final flavour of the curry.
Always used to use them for main dishes though. They do take longer but get there eventually.
Give them a try Michael, you never know. ;)
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I'm not that fussed what onions I use as long as they don't contain horse DNA. I buy mines from Lidl,
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I've just checked and my last bag was from Holland. No wonder my base tasted a little flat.
::) Boom boom.
Which would presumably sound like "Bome bome" if pronounced by a native Dutch speaker !
** Phil.
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I do like a mixture of red and brown onions for traditional cooking, but for a base I use whatever is cheapest down my local Turkish shop, usually a couple of quid for 5kg. The price of red onions at the moment doesn't inspire to use them in a base.
A couple of places around gare du nord do those mutton rolls and they are fantastic!
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You are right Frank I asked the question and no one so far has made a base with red onions
I will make a small batch up and report :)
And we are all being so nice :-*
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A couple of places around gare du nord do those mutton rolls and they are fantastic!
I Know ;D ;D
Great pic eh. ;)
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I haven't had one for ages. I'm salivating now. I'm going to have to see if I can do a flying visit for lunch this week.
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I can feel a trip to Lidl coming on for
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, a temperature station or even some horsey items.
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, a temperature station or even some horsey items.
Don't even go there. My Missus won't even set foot in Lidl. It interferes with her snobometer.
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, ...
A home shredder : bl@@dy h@ll, your Lidl must be massive. A shredder large enough to accommodate our home would occupy at least 1/3 of the Lidl branch at Tovil ...
** Phil.
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, a temperature station or even some horsey items.
Don't even go there. My Missus won't even set foot in Lidl. It interferes with her snobometer.
Indeed RD, it is a trip best taken under cover of darkness, with some sort of disguise, and spending no more than a tenner lest the natives think you are rubbing salt into their wounds.
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Indeed RD, it is a trip best taken under cover of darkness, with some sort of disguise, and spending no more than a tenner lest the natives think you are rubbing salt into their wounds.
I find it is also best not to ask the cashier if they will accept an Amex Centurion card ...
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, a temperature station or even some horsey items.
Don't even go there. My Missus won't even set foot in Lidl. It interferes with her snobometer.
Indeed RD, it is a trip best taken under cover of darkness, with some sort of disguise, and spending no more than a tenner lest the natives think you are rubbing salt into their wounds.
As it happens I have no problem with Lidl especially some of their own brand kitchen gadgets. She won' t go in Asda either and at the risk of causing another war ;) I agree with her on that one. I am sure there are some very nice Asdas around but the one round here is low life city personified.
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I recomend taking your Waitrose carrier bags with you in case the neighbours are watching as you unload the car.
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I recomend taking your Waitrose carrier bags with you in case the neighbours are watching as you unload the car.
Not sure about leaving the car in Lidl car park
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A trip to Lidl is always of interest. As well as Dutch onions you can always pick up various weekly bargains such as a home shredder, a temperature station or even some horsey items.
Don't even go there. My Missus won't even set foot in Lidl. It interferes with her snobometer.
Indeed RD, it is a trip best taken under cover of darkness, with some sort of disguise, and spending no more than a tenner lest the natives think you are rubbing salt into their wounds.
As it happens I have no problem with Lidl especially some of their own brand kitchen gadgets. She won' t go in Asda either and at the risk of causing another war ;) I agree with her on that one. I am sure there are some very nice Asdas around but the one round here is low life city personified.
OMG soooo funny. I tend to think I'm going up market when I shop at ASDA!!!! I clearly am a lower form of life, maybe a single cell amoeba!
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;) it is not so much the shop, it is the people who frequent this particular shop and whom make the aforementioned amoeba look quite intelligent. ;)