Thank you, Phil. The video is great, but were precise quantities never specified?

Summing up my thoughts:

1) There's much talk about the "missing 5%". There are two senses in which this might be interpreted. First, that something is being purposely withheld from us. Second, that some restaurants use ingredients we may be unaware of. I'm not convinced of the first, and agree with the second. BIR style curries have been discussed among enthusiasts for years, with input from ex BIR chefs, behind the scenes footage, and so on. It seems highly implausible that "the ones in on it" are averting our eyes from "the secret". Plausibility, not possibility, is interesting here. Ingredients, methods, and convictions vary from restaurant to restaurant, still more from region to region, so the suggestion borders on conspiratorial. To the extent it's claimed that the BIR taste is elusive, I just take that to mean a restaurant is using other ingredients or the same ingredients in different proportions or brands. However, I don't take there to be a specific ingredient/set of ingredients known by all good BIR chefs but withheld from us. Any talk of being able to reproduce the taste in a restaurant but not a home setting seems to me an artifact of the mind.

2) I've tried many base gravy recipes. The last base I made contained relatively little oil (120 mL for 2 kg). It was also the first time I made my base using the "add everything to the pot and boil" method. Every other base involved frying onions, garlic and ginger paste, spices, and blended plum tomatoes (or some combination of these). I'm not convinced that frying anything separately makes a difference. Since the non-frying method is easier, healthier, and just as tasty, the amount of oil typically used is superfluous. Re-using oil increases trans fat content, which makes it even more unhealthy.

3) I've tried many pre-cooked chicken recipes. My usual method is this: boil a chicken breast cubed in 500 mL water, one stock cube, and one teaspoon of mix powder. I don't understand the complaint of tough chicken. People warn to cook chicken for 10-15 minutes at most and even to run it under cold water to halt the cooking process. I've never done this. I boil chicken on low heat for 25-30 mins and keep it in the hot water, sometimes for over an hour. It's always tender. I tried Chef Din's pre-cooked chicken recipe. This involves cooking chicken in its own juices without any additional water. The idea is to stir for 10-15 minutes until the juices are released, cook, then let rest. I didn't notice a significant difference, and certainly not one that justifies the additional effort. My brother thought the same.

4) Chef Din's comment about sugar is... something. Someone said earlier in the thread that "wannabes" mention the Maillard reaction to create a pretense of knowledge. That might be true, but it doesn't change that the Maillard reaction actually occurs. In my experience, adding base gravy incrementally actually makes for better curries.

5) On the topic of things that actually work, I notice a difference when using a small amount of very finely chopped onions at the start of savory curries. Before trying this, I used a caramelized onion paste (see: "How to make Onion Paste (a Bunjarra for extra flavour in Curries) by Misty Ricardo.) Chopped onion works just as well, is easier, and more healthy, so I'll continue using that.

All in all, I don't think BIR curry making is as complex as it's made out to be, and that declarations to the contrary may be a case of the sunk-cost fallacy.

It will caramelise in any pan if you don't stir it. You just won't necessarily see it sticking, which is how most people would interpret it as having caramelised. Aluminium pans definitely not essential. They are used in BIRs for the reasons you state but also because they are cheap and because they are light.

Hmmm. I've seen conflicting opinions about this. Some swear by it, others dismiss it as folklore. It's the same thing with stuff like seasoned oil. Some chefs swear by it, others say it's superfluous. I confess that I never see the same effects at home as I do watching aluminium pan frying. I have a non-stick pan. Given aluminium pans are safe, there may be no harm in trying, but I'll keep your input in mind.

There's a few BIR near me that use aniseed/fennel in their madras. Depends what you've experienced. I like the addition and have known it being used since the 90s but wouldn't say it's essential or part of a classic nationwide madras. Some do some don't and I use it on and off and still get the lovely cooked BIR madras flavour without.

Fenugreek powder is another nice addition, I think it adds a certain smell and smokey flavour of BIR in general and I also use leaves mostly. In my mix powder I use kashmiri powder.

With aniseed I just use the hard spice in the ally pan and remove it at the end. I've tried aniseed ground bought in a packet to save me the time of grinding it but the flavour gets very diluted even with a lot in so one or two star aniseed whole do a better job. You could also bias your spiced oil with aniseed/fennel.

Madras is my fav and it's pretty basic hot but tasty curry really with room to put your own distinguishing note on it, some like lemon, lots of coriander, aniseed background and so on.

After 8-10 years I've got a consistent BIR flavour coming through even with just a standard madras mix power. I've been down the road of trying this and that many times in the early days.

Nice. Madras is my fav too. Do you mind posting your favourite recipe and method? I stumbled across an "ultimate" madras thread and this was the ingredient list:

1Tb - Green Pepper (finely chopped)
1Tb - Onion (finely chopped)
1ts - Hot Chilli Powder
1ts - Deggi Mirch
1ts - Kashmiri Chilli Powder
1Tb - Mix Powder
1ts - Fenugreek Leaves (rubbed between fingers)
1ts - Cumin Powder
2ts - Lemon Juice
2ts - Garlic Pureed
1ts - Ginger Pureed
2Tb - Blended Tinned Toms
1Tb - Coriander
1/4ts - Salt
4 drops of worcester sauce
6Tb - Reclaimed oil
350ml - Base sauce

I wonder how yours compares. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePsxOc-awsI

Excellent vid from Ali.  Very similar method to what is used at my local TA.  One difference is that our chef blends onion and green pepper with the added water.  When cooled, a good amount of red spiced oil rises to the top.  This is the only spiced oil my local uses.  Generally, 1-2 chef