Curry Recipes Online
Curry Base Recipes => Curry Base Chat => Topic started by: emin-j on September 23, 2009, 08:42 PM
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Had a chat with the owner of my local T/A this evening while waiting for my order , we got talking about how different T/A Curries taste well ' different ' , he agreed and went on to say " some T/A use frozen base " :o and their Curries will not taste as good as a Curry made from fresh base.
I totally agree with him as I have found my best tasting Curries come from freshly made base and the frozen base Curries are never quite as good.
This is an award winning T/A so who am I to argue ;)
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he agreed and went on to say " some T/A use frozen base "
I'd be very surprised if many do Emin
This is an award winning T/A so who am I to argue ;)
Almost all BIRs appear to be "award winning" Emin, they seem to give them out like free poppadoms....
....and the "awards" are often years out of date...when there were previous owners and, particularly, chefs working there.
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I freeze my bases because I have to really. I'm only making 2 curries per week so the stuff would go off before I used a batch.
I'm not into making smaller batches of base (less than 2 litres) as I don't have time to prepare bases regularly, and the results may not be so good.
I'm afraid freezing is a necessary evil for me!
I too very much doubt that TAs would freeze any base they make - I'd be surprised if it even reached a fridge overnight.
I personally don't have a problem with the taste of a thawed out frozen base.
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I think if you are looking for that 100 % BIR your not helping yourself using frozen base.
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The difference between frozen and fresh base doesn't seem much to my old taste buds and is certainly not the missing link to achieve 100% BIR for me.
And what is fresh? Our curry guru Bruce Edwards doesn't freeze his bases but he reckons they taste best on day 4 after leaving them in the fridge.
I'm creating pretty yummy curries these days that easily beat any supermarket factory curries or curries in a jar so I don't really care if don't get 100% BIR.
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I really haven't noticed a difference using frozen/thawed vs. fresh base.
I really haven't.
If I ever have a Eureka moment in my curry cooking and it involves a fresh base, I will cease freezing immediately.
-- Josh
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i think the oil has something to do with the change in taste. it seems to separate out on the surface.
i've only done one side by side but that was enough to convince me. the comparison was with fresh base and 24hr frozen.
i did not cook with it so the difference could well be masked by the subsequent cooking.
i'd add that the difference was not huge. i guess what sealed it was that i know that my local TA only use fresh.
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I've found that 3 day old base from the fridge ( A BE suggestion) is easily the best; next best being fresh; and least good, frozen.
I freeze too, a necessary evil, and whilst not as good, I find it does not make such a huge difference as to warrant making smaller batches and not freezing, IMHO :)
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The difference between frozen and fresh base doesn't seem much to my old taste buds and is certainly not the missing link to achieve 100% BIR for me.
For those looking for the missing 5% it could make a difference.
And what is fresh? Our curry guru Bruce Edwards doesn't freeze his bases but he reckons they taste best on day 4 after leaving them in the fridge.
Not Frozen , and used within a few days.
I'm creating pretty yummy curries these days that easily beat any supermarket factory curries or curries in a jar so I don't really care if don't get 100% BIR.
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The problem I have is the prparation of it all on Curry Nights , Rice ,Bhajis ,Naan , If I had to prepare for a Fresh base as well it'l be Midnight by the time it was all ready ;D
I am very happy with my Curries even using a frozen Base but the majority of T/A use fresh so if your looking for the best results you need to use fresh.
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The problem I have is the prparation of it all on Curry Nights , Rice ,Bhajis ,Naan , If I had to prepare for a Fresh base as well it'l be Midnight by the time it was all ready ;D
I am very happy with my Curries even using a frozen Base but the majority of T/A use fresh so if your looking for the best results you need to use fresh.
I have to agree eminJ,
I freeze mine as well as I don't want to throw the base away after cooking an initial curry.
I find that once I have gotten it out of the freezer and it has de-frosted, it seems to have separated somewhat, (well with the SnS base anyway), so I usually just gently warm it up in a saucepan until it is tepid, just mixing it around to ensure it all bonds back together again.
I have to admit that the last few curries that I have posted on here have used the "frozen and re-thawed SnS base" and once in the cooking stage I still get that toffee aroma and the oil separation.
I've seen food frozen before, and unless it's packed properly for the freezer, it can get "freezer burnt" which spoils the food to the point that you just want to throw it away, and its not just down to how long you freeze it for either.
Find good thick freezer bags, ensure the produce has been in the fridge to make it cold anyway, then freeze it. It should then keep for some time without spoiling, although I don't keep my base for more than about 3 -4 weeks anyway in the freezer, I'm too addicted to cooking it and have to admit lately, I have been cooking Indian food 4-5 times a week.
Probably not experimenting enough, but I am enjoying all the same, and thats all thanks to everyone on here for their contributions... :)
Keep it up :)
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Like most of us I suppose I would wish to have my own replica BIR kitchen and an assistant otherwise I need to make relatively large batches and freeze but since using all manner of recipes and tips from the site over recent years my results are wonderful compaared to anything from books or elsewhere. Frozen is a necesary part of it for me but does not make any real difference to my end results.
The biggest single improvemnet for me with or without freezing has been the additon of the old onion paste secret and more recently the Banjarra. They along with the cooked Garlic Ginger paste have taking everything I do to near perfection. However as I have pointed out my motivation over thirty years has been to replicate Glasgow style BIR recipes then to work out from there to other regional variations. Like others too I'am after the flavours that were around in the 70s and 80s as a bonus. This site gave me all my breakthroughs and the drive to get into The Ashoka Kitchen. grateful. PP
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Like most of us I suppose I would wish to have my own replica BIR kitchen and an assistant otherwise I need to make relatively large batches and freeze but since using all manner of recipes and tips from the site over recent years my results are wonderful compaared to anything from books or elsewhere. Frozen is a necesary part of it for me but does not make any real difference to my end results.
The biggest single improvemnet for me with or without freezing has been the additon of the old onion paste secret and more recently the Banjarra. They along with the cooked Garlic Ginger paste have taking everything I do to near perfection. However as I have pointed out my motivation over thirty years has been to replicate Glasgow style BIR recipes then to work out from there to other regional variations. Like others too I'am after the flavours that were around in the 70s and 80s as a bonus. This site gave me all my breakthroughs and the drive to get into The Ashoka Kitchen. grateful. PP
I need to try the Banjara and cooked Ginger/Garlic paste. I have quite a bit of all that stuff in my kitchen and an hour or two to spare, so I'm off to try now :)
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The problem I have is the prparation of it all on Curry Nights , Rice ,Bhajis ,Naan , If I had to prepare for a Fresh base as well it'l be Midnight by the time it was all ready ;D
I am very happy with my Curries even using a frozen Base but the majority of T/A use fresh so if your looking for the best results you need to use fresh.
Wow, you do the whole lot, that's a damn good effort!
The people i'm cooking for often find they have to make do with just main courses. I concentrate on the curries so much i forget to cook rice! I suppose i kind of want people to experience it in it's purest form like i do - with a spoon.
I've started making chappatis regularly now since i learnt to make them in india. They go down well although i always try to get someone else involved to take some of the work off me. "i'll show you how to make chappatis" is a classic line ;-)
Anyway, i was gonna suggest to you that you make the base sauce a day or two before your curry night. That way it doesnt need to be frozen.
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The problem I have is the preparation of it all on Curry Nights , Rice ,Bhajis ,Naan , If I had to prepare for a Fresh base as well it'll be Midnight by the time it was all ready ;D
I am very happy with my Curries even using a frozen Base but the majority of T/A use fresh so if your looking for the best results you need to use fresh.
Wow, you do the whole lot, that's a damn good effort!
The people i'm cooking for often find they have to make do with just main courses. I concentrate on the curries so much i forget to cook rice! I suppose i kind of want people to experience it in it's purest form like i do - with a spoon.
I've started making chappatis regularly now since i learnt to make them in india. They go down well although i always try to get someone else involved to take some of the work off me. "i'll show you how to make chappatis" is a classic line ;-)
Anyway, i was gonna suggest to you that you make the base sauce a day or two before your curry night. That way it doesnt need to be frozen.
Thanks' for your reply chinois , I've just bought a 10 litre stock pot for base and tried it out on Friday , other than a little mishap :'( I made enough base to make 3 Madras and 2 Korma's and had 14 T/A containers of base left over to freeze :D What I have found is by the time you get everything prepared to make a new batch of Base Sauce you might as well make a ' good size ' batch as the cooking time isn't that much different . :)
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Thanks' for your reply chinois , I've just bought a 10 litre stock pot for base and tried it out on Friday , other than a little mishap :'( I made enough base to make 3 Madras and 2 Korma's and had 14 T/A containers of base left over to freeze :D What I have found is by the time you get everything prepared to make a new batch of Base Sauce you might as well make a ' good size ' batch as the cooking time isn't that much different . :)
Yeah, i know what you mean when you've got everything set up!