Curry Recipes Online
British Indian Restaurant Recipes - Main Dishes => BIR Main Dishes Chat => Topic started by: ranat22 on March 24, 2009, 02:13 PM
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hi
can anyone tell me what makes a madras redish in colour as i cant seem to get the right colour,i know it should be all in the taste,but imo if it looks like a restaurant/takeaway dish then it will taste more like one,mine come out a more brownish vindaloo,or bhuna colour,is it paprika or red food colouring....cheers
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Kashmiri Mirch imparts a very red colour and is used for this reason.
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cheers
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Try a spice mix that contains some paprika (a la Bruce Edwards'), and a three or four tablespoons of pasatta or blended tinned plum tomatos, the latter helps with the sour taste, without being too obvious like lemon/lime/vinigar or tamarind.
Or as suggested above, use Deggi Mirch, if you can't find that, some extra hot chillie powder used WITH some paprika works equally well in my opinion, I've tried both.
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i only like madras red. i put it down to tom puree, paprika & passata.
i use 2 tbsp tom puree, LB spice mix and 4 tbsp passata per 200ml portion.
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Ditto Jerry, very happy with my Madras' now, it's the other dishes I want to perfect now. Trouble is we like the Madras so much, I rarely get arround to cooking anything else, except maybe CKs Bhuna and CTM (the latter using CAs Tikka), there are pretty good too, although I have had preety much no input in 'improving' these!
As for Madras I use:
-450ml base
-3 tbs oil
-4 lev tps Bruce Edwards' spice mix (the version WITH paprika)*
-2 lev tps Rajah extra hot chilie (or 1 plus 1 deggi merch)
-1/4 tps ground methi leaf
-pinch brown sugar (about 1/2 tps)
-1/2 tps salt
-3 tbs (big old ones proably more than 15ml each) blitzed tinned toms or passata
-1/4 tps Worchester sauce (& NO more than that!)
-chix breast (not pre-cooked, done in 10 mins so no need)
-Loadsof chopped fresh corry, mainly the fine stalks (better flavour than leaves)
*NOTE I sometimes use 3 tps basaar mix instead of BE spice mix, and reduce the chilie by 1 tps, different but also very good!
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...the latter helps with the sour taste...
It's this sort of statement that makes me realise just how different our goals are. I've never (until very recently) had a madras with any hint of sourness to it and that takes it in a totally different direction to what I am used to, and to what I want to emulate.
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i only like madras red. i put it down to tom puree, paprika & passata.
Hi Jerry
I must admit I have trouble with this. No matter what ingredients I use to make the red type madras I find that the longer it cooks the browner it turns, until it's like a normal brown curry. I'm a bit perplexed! Any ideas?
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No matter what ingredients I use to make the red type madras I find that the longer it cooks the browner it turns, until it's like a normal brown curry. I'm a bit perplexed! Any ideas?
Secret Santa,
i think the "brownness" comes from over cooking the spice at the spice frying stage (emulsification)(or at least cooking longer than it needs). i'm not 100% sure though.
why i think this is that i've been trying to get consistency on this "smokiness" and been pushing the cooking technique as far to burning as a can (still edible). the longer i fry the spices the darker the curry turns out. the reason why i'm not 100% is that bhuna always turn out brown - i don't know if this is down to ingredient or simply that there's very little tomato (c/w madras).
i also think methi might be a contender but as i don't like it's taste in madras for sure - i no longer use it.
i'm also sure that paprika has a part to play ie the mix powder needs to include it and probably in a higher proportion than for other dishes.
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Secret Santa, I think we've read each others posts over the last year or so, so I think I know where you're coming from.
Perhaps sourness is the wrong word, but the tomatos certainly add something, perhaps 'tang' would be a better description, certainly not sour in the way that lemon juice -for example- is sour. I'd be surprised if you have not tried it, since reading your posts it's obvious that you've tried pretty much everything, but if you havn't, please do, just once!
The Madras I make, at the risk of blowing my own trumpet, is easily better than any BIR near me. What it isn't better than however, is the cheap but amazing savory hot curries I had in Leeds between 1982-1985. I just can't get anywhere near that flavour! Reading between the lines, I suspect it's these savory curries you're trying to replicate. The ones that you can't find anywhere anymore! If you find the answer PLEASE me know. I can still remember the amazing smell of these dishes like it was yesterday!!
When I first came across dried methi leaf, I hoped that would be the answer, but it wasn't!
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hi adrian have you tried using butter ghee to cook this recipe. this can give a rich aroma and taste to the dish, providing you don't burn the ghee ie frying at too higher temperature. try this....
add 4 tbsp melted ghee to the preheated pan medium heat then add 1 tbsp of finely chopped onion fry for a couple of mins until the onions starts to soften then add 1 chefs pinch of fine chopped garlic fry until raw smell cooked out 20 secs max then add the salt 1 pinch, 1 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder or to taste 1 tsp restaurant masala(curry powder mix) 1tbsp tomato paste (2/1 tom paste water) turn up the heat to high mix well the when you smell the spices release their aroma add the 1st ladle of base sauce mix well and then reduce then add 1 chefs pinch of methi and another ladle of base 1 tsp lemon juice mix well then add the precooked chicken. turn down the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce starts to thicken slightly (if it thickens too much just add a little more base) 1 minute from the end add a good pinch of fine choppped coriander mix in well, turn off the heat and serve garnished with some more coriander.
regards
gary :)
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Thanks parker21, I'll give it a go!
I havn't used gee since years ago, making authentic style stuff, Madhur Jaffery etc!
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What it isn't better than however, is the cheap but amazing savory hot curries I had in Leeds between 1982-1985. I just can't get anywhere near that flavour!
It's crazy isn't it! Just what cataclysmic event occured after that time that wiped out the old style curries? I'd love to know.
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Just what cataclysmic event occured after that time that wiped out the old style curries? I'd love to know.
for me the cat got out the bag as everyone realised how good curries were and the old style got lost in the scramble for spondoolies
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CTM (the latter using CAs Tikka), there are pretty good too, although I have had preety much no input in 'improving' these!
What input are you looking for ADB?
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Corry, my point was simply that the Bhuna & CTM need no improvement, they're (me thinks) as good as they can be! I don't feel I need to tweak them in any way. My version of madras on the other hand, although loosely based on many others, has benefited from one or two subtle 'improvements', in my humble opinion.
I hope my poor English did not lead to think otherwise. I think the Bhuna & CTM are fantastic, and so does everyone else I've fed them to!