Thank you Panpot! 

I have been using these recipes religiously ever since I discovered this forum.  Especially the ginger/garlic and onion pastes.  I'm excited that you have new ones to share with us!

Jerry- I have made 3 large batches of the onion paste so far.  The first batch I cooked quite a bit longer and came out very dark and caramelized like windybum's. My next two batches didn't get cooked down as much, but I'm not sure if I like them as much.  I think I preferred the first batch, but I need to make one more to compare.

I made this tonight and it was wonderful.  I accidentally used corn starch instead of baking powder : but it still turned out great.  I'll definitely make it again.

Thanks, UncleBuck!   Our Indian grocer carries some MDH products, so I'll see if they have it. 

May I ask what the difference is between the Deggi Mirch and the Kashmiri Mirch?

That's good to know. I do like spicy, but it's easy to go overboard with Cayenne.   Maybe I'll just have to experiment with different chilli powders.

Thank you!!  I knew there had to be a difference.  The flavor of my mexican chili powder just didn't seem right for curry.  I'll look for some Deggi Mirch.

A lot of recipes on here (and Indian recipes in general) call for chili powder.  In the U.S. "Chili Powder" refers to a blend of spices which I associate it more with Mexican or Tex-Mex flavors.  For example, the ingredients one I have in my cupboard now are:  Ancho chili pepper, cumin, garlic and Mexican oregano.

I was just wondering if Chili Powder in the U.K. is the same thing or something different? 

I was making a fairly large batch of curry, and just simply didn't have enough Bunjara oil to use entirely.  I also wasn't sure how strong of a flavor it would be, so I didn't want to use too heavy of a hand. 

I find that peanut oil has a slight peanut taste to it, but it's not really noticeable through all of the other strong curry flavors.

I like to make a cucumber riata.  This would be an approximation of my recipe (I don't measure.. it's very forgiving)

1 small cucumber- peeled and de-seeded
1 cup greek yogurt
handful of cilantro (coriander) leaves
pinch garam masala

Put all ingredients into the food processor, and blend.

You can use mint instead of coriander (or use both)

Thanks Josh!  We really enjoyed this curry.  It did have a nice amount of spice to it.  I wasn't really sure just how much gravy a bhuna should have, but I think you could easily add more base sauce to this if you wanted.

I also wanted to note that I use peanut oil when I cook asian food, but I'm not sure how common it is for BIR's.  I think it was used quite a bit in India though.

I'm not really sure which section to post this in.  I've never actually had a BIR curry, but this recipe is based on the Ashoka recipes and I wanted to share (it came out really good!).  I made my own changes to try to replicate one of my favorite dishes from one of my favorite American Indian restaurants.  ;D


Chili Lime Chicken Bhuna

Peanut Oil
Butter Ghee
Bunjara Oil
1/2 Red or Green Bell Pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 lg onion, sliced thinly
1tbs Ashoka Ginger Garlic Paste
1tbs Tomato Paste
Juice from one lime
2tsp Fenugreek Leaves
1T Curry Powder (Rajah Hot Madras)
1T Chili Powder
Salt to taste
1tsp Sugar
1lb Marinated Chicken (lemon juice, cilantro, g/g paste, veg. oil)
1-2T Ashoka Base
1T Ashoka Bunjara
1/2c Chopped Cilantro Leaves (coriander leaves)



Heat oils on med-high heat

Add Peppers and onions and fry for 2-3 minutes
Stir in Ginger/Garlic Paste, using back of chef's spoon to blend together
Stir in lime juice
Add Fenugreek, Curry, Chili Powder, Sugar- fry for another 30sec.-1minute
Add chicken
When the chicken is almost cooked, add Base sauce and Bunjara and continue until chicken is cooked.
Add Cilantro during last 2-3 minutes of cooking. 


Notes:

I use mostly peanut oil with a small spoonful of Butter Ghee and Bunjara oil for extra flavor.  The amount of oil you use is entirely up to you (restaurant style curries obviously being more oily then not).

Tomato paste would be the thick, concentrated tomato paste.  I think in Britain it is referred to as Pureed Tomato?

I used less salt in the Bunjara and Ashoka base then called for, so salt to taste