Eventually got around to trying MDB's balti gravy MK1 with the 3 pot method.  Have been using this as a normal base for the last 4 weeks but have not yet tried the plain chicken balti, so can't give an update on whether this original version gives  a better result than the MK2 version.  I'll try over the weekend and post some comments.  Certainly have no complaints with the results so far, although I do like my curries a little bit saucy, so not as condensed looking with a preponderance of oil as in Bengali Bob's balti pics.

This topic has been moved to Curry Base Chat.

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=14271.0

Visited the TA which jb has been patronising regularly as a customer and has posted about recently on the forum.  He's now getting in there as much as he can and sharing the info on how they prep and cook their dishes with the rest of us.  See the latest thread here:

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,14226.0.html

I don't think my photographic skills really show all the dishes at their best, but the flavour was certainly there.  I will be returning to sample more of their food.

Anyway, to the porn.  First up, lids off and it's smelling good



The main event, tasting very nice, great texture, reasonable vindaloo heat with a repeat order coming soon



My staple side of saag aloo, don't let pictures deceive you on this one, tasty and not oily as my pic may suggest



Now the real test, the brinjal bhaji, it wasn't to be found lacking - YUM



All dished up and ready to go

After another vindaloo near miss last night I'm beginning to think my mojo has deserted me.  I've a reliable base, confirmed by many as producing excellent curries, beautiful mild tasting soft tender pre-cooked chicken, a standard mix powder (Zaal) a reasonable technique.  But I still cannot nail my local vindaloo nor get anywhere close - YET. 
So feeling a little miffed after last night's failed attempt I decided it was time to return to old faithful and something I knew i would enjoy.  Before i set about cooking my phall, I thought i'd have a read up on some old posts on the subject and check out the phall video at Zaal, although i'd already decided on the cooking method for tonight's curry. 
Some 20 years ago I witnessed my phall being cooked in another local restaurant which is still in business, but I suspect the chef has long moved on.  It involved the normal suspects at the start of cooking, g/g, mix powder, chilli powder and gravy.  Then came the shock at the time, a good amount of water and a heaped chef's spoon of chilli added once the initial sauce had been cooked for a while.  Then a dash of PLJ for those that can remember it, instead of lemon juice.  Reading through Parker 21's Rajvar phall sauce post and the post Haldi's did on phall, and thinking back to the Zaal experience, the combination of water and chilli powder was not something unusual.  So tonight I cooked my phall just as i'd seen it done all those years ago.  A ringstinger i'm sure, but so very tasty.  At least not another falure 
The pain of last night is slowly being forgotten, with a full belly and a nice bottle of 8% La Chouffe Belgium ale to be followed up by similar strength special Xmas edition    Who needs modern vindaloo  :
The plated article



And a little close up of the main event

This topic has been moved to Cooking Equipment.

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=14221.0

This topic has been moved to British Indian Restaurant Recipe Requests.

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=8535.0

This topic has been moved to Tandoori and Tikka.

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=12548.0

This topic has been moved to Curry Base Chat

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=14195.0

An unfamiliar dish to many I am guessing, but found regularly on the menus of a growing number of curry houses now found across Southern Ireland. It most likely has its roots here and probably goes by a different name and could easily be related to butter or makhani chicken or even the Punjabi masala.  The menu descriptions:

Edited to infill missing recipe per this post; thanks Bob-A-Job.

Ingredients:

- Portion of cooked Chicken Tikka
- 350 ml portion of heated curry base
- 2 Tbsp Oil
- 2 knobs of butter (each approx 1 Tbsp when melted)
- Rounded Tbsp finely chopped Onion
- 2 Tsp Garlic (ginger) paste
- 0.5 Tsp Meethi leaves
- 0.25 Tsp Salt
- 2 Tsp Tandoori Masala powder
- 1 Tsp Mix powder
- 0.5 Tsp Chilli powder or to taste
- 1 Tbsp Tomato paste already diluted 1 part paste to 2 parts water
- 2 rounded Tbsp ground Almond (or Almond powder)
- 1 level Tsp of Coconut powder or dessicated coconut
- 1.5 Tsp Sugar
- 2 Tsp Tomato Ketchup
- 1 Tsp Lemon juice
- Half a Tomato cut into quarters
- 3 Tbsp single Cream
- 0.25 Red Food Colouring
- 1 Tbsp chopped fresh Coriander

Method:

- Add 2 Tbsp spoon of oil to your curry pan and place on medium heat
- Add the finely chopped onion and first knob of butter and fry till they start to take on a little colour
- Add pureed garlic/ginger and fry until the sizzling from the puree subsides, about 30 to 40 seconds
- Add the meethi leaves, salt, tandoori masala, mix and chilli powders, pre-diluted tomato paste and fry for 30 to 45 seconds mixing well with the pan contents – DO NOT BURN
- Add 2 chef spoons of the heated curry base and stir in well and fry for 30 to 45 seconds
- Add half of the remaining curry gravy, almond and coconut powders followed by the sugar
- Give the pan a good stir ensuring all ingredients are well mixed
- Add the chicken tikka and stir
- Leave for 3 to 4 minutes to cook, checking occasionally, do not let it burn
- Add the remaining curry gravy, tomato ketchup, tomato quarters, lemon juice, stir and cook for 2 minutes
- Add the cream and food colouring and stir through the curry
- Reduce heat and leave to thicken to a normal curry consistency
- Add the coriander stirring it through the curry
- Add the knob of butter folding it in to the curry until it has melted
- Garnish with a sprinkle of fresh coriander




Tandoori Masala Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons Ground Coriander
3 Tablespoons Ground Cumin
3 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
3 Tablespoons Paprika
5 Teaspoons Ground Ginger
5 Teaspoons Mango Powder
5 Teaspoons Dried Mint
3 Teaspoons Chilli Powder
1 Teaspoon Red Food Colouring Powder

Not everybody's cup of tea I know but i had a request for a couple of CTMs from a work colleague who is soon moving on and whom i've worked with for a number of years.  In exchange for these I received a rather lush tart moist lemon drizzle loaf cake.  WOW, this is some cake 
After a long break from the kitchen and cooking curries what better way to ease myself back in than with this dish.   Although this dish is not one i'd ever consider ordering I have tried several over the years just to get an idea of the "ball park" CTM - and what a difference there can be  . Anyway, there are plenty of acclaimed recipes out there for enthusiasts to try which don't vary much from the recipe I use so i've no plans currently to post mine.
However, this did provide me with the opportunity to cook and write up my chicken patala recipe which i will post a little later in the week with required porn ;D.  Not a dish i've ever come across in the UK but very common place in the emerald isle.  Whilst similar to a CTM, it is far richer with more tomato flavour, more savoury rather than sweet with a  lovely buttery taste and smell.  More about that later.  Anyway, a pic of my CTM and the infamous patala, which is to be accompanied by my keema rice and a chana masala, which i will post the recipe for if anybody is interested.  Again, I doubt there will be any surprised as to how it is prepared for the old hands 

The CTM



The patala and a  close up





Whilst neither curry appeals to my taste I did add an extra bit of tikka to each to sample my efforts and confess to having cleared up any remaining sauce in the pan after cooking each of them  :

This topic has been moved to Storage

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=13796.0

This seems to be the best place to start posting info relating to my journey to achieving something close my local BIR's interpretation of "chicken vindaloo".  It certainly may not please the purists in terms of what the dish should be or what it should contain, but it's what i enjoy and am happy to eat day in day out.  I can see the shaking of some heads already  ;D but i don't really care what others think, as long as i achieve my aim.  If i haven't raised the bar high enough for some people, I ain't gonna lose any sleep over it.  My idea of the best BIR food will be different from many others on the site.  It certainly does not extend to large plates with a meagre portion placed in the centre surrounded by carefully placed meaningless garnish    Give me a good full plate of tasty BIR food any day.  I can easily forgive the lack of fancy superfluous presentation frills  ;D
Anyway, the journey begins in true CR0 style, with the thread getting derailed almost immediately, this time by its starter, rather than somebody else  :
Last Saturday, having been celebrating my birthday (for most of the week), my fellow revellers and I ended up in our usual BIR south of the river.  To cut a long story short, i order my normal dish, yes you've guessed it, with fresh green chillis of course.  Very enjoyable and totally different to that supplied by my normal local BIR.  The meal was coming to a close when i made the fateful mistake of sampling a spoonful from a dish i'd heard of and was on my radar (CR0 influenced of course).  A friend had ordered chicken rezalla and i thought i'd just see how it tasted.
Based on the raptures my tongue and mouth went into when the first spoonful of this hit the tastebuds, the vindaloo journey immediately stalled    I was blown away by a curry which had no heat, just loads of well balanced tandoori flavours combined with chicken tikka and mince meat in a thickish red tandoori sauce.  I know some of you are thinking "he must be unwell" or "he's been away from the kitchen too long" or "he's lost it completely".  Yes, I actually had found a dish, totally devoid of heat that rang my bells and pushed all my curry buttons  ;D
Subsequently, I've read all there is to read on rezalla on here, from the 80's dish recounted by CT to a dish which could well include CTM ingredients and a few more.  I have some ideas already about how to start to recreate it but am keen to hear of others experiences and descriptions of rezalla dishes they have eaten in BIR's.  I will need to obtain a control sample of the dish against which I can compare my efforts which will require me to venture once again south of the river.  This will obviously be a long term project with much more complexity than the vindaloo journey I feel.  Hopefully I'll get close to both 
All on topic contributions are now most welcome 

Finally got round to making tarka dhall, although the pre prepared dhall had reduced greatly in quantity since cooking it the other day.  Just cannot resist the temptation to keep having the occasional spoonful every now and again  :  Anyway returned home from the pub to my supper having had pre-birthday celebratory drinks , all food prepped before partaking of any alcohol  except for finishing the rice



Tarka dhall cooked as per CBM's video (nice to see you posting again Mick).  Very tasty and as good as i've experienced in any restaurant.



Whilst I like plain boiled basmati with a very hot curry, my norm would be my pilau rice.  But when i have prepared keema in the house i just cannot resist this.  Simple but oh, so tasty 



Not forgetting the main, my old friend the Elaichi NIS. 



And for those who like a  closer view



It's good to be back    I suppose i'd better get my pre-cooked chicken and lamb on the go for future sessions  ;D  Next up will be take one on my vindaloo but not tonight.  Appointment in China town for dinner and a few belgium beers in Da Hems to ease the pain of another year passing 

Last year I reported the continuing demise of my much loved Elaichi North Indian Special from one of jb

Tonight was meant to be Chinese from a local TA with no cooking involved and just a bit of relaxation  :.  But you lot put pay to that with all the porn that has been posted recently  .  I haven

Having resisted the temptation to head to the pub to see in the New Year and thus avoiding the compulsory next day hangover, it seemed only proper to start as we mean to go on - with a curry  ;D
Nothing special or complex, a nice tasty not overly hot phall made to spec as per the Zaal video using Az's base and mix powder.  All details are contained in this thread which is a good starting point for any new to the BIR journey:

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,7714.170.html



I added some left over bombay potato and saag aloo which i had cooked the night before, having used the little india base, both of which i was very impressed with 



I was tempted to do some special fried rice but by this stage the Leffe was beginning to take effect  so i ended up with simple pilau.  Again, a cast off from the day before  :



All in all, a satisfying supper which can be consistently produced 



Looking forward to the curry challenges of 2014.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL PARTICIPATING MEMBERS ON CR0

Haven

For those that have been waiting for it, here it is.  My take on how I do it, having read many a recipe, watched many a video and eaten many samosas, bad ones as well as good  ;D  Thanks to Natterjak for proofing another of my recipes.

Samosa filling(CH)



One recipe of lamb or potato will be enough for 14 -16 average size samosas

450grm pack of minced lamb/mutton or beef (or 750grms cooked whole potatoes with skin on)
2tbs of oil
½ medium onion finely chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
One level tsp of ginger garlic paste
3 small fresh chillies finely chopped
1 cup of frozen peas

Spice Mix
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp mix powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1tsp methi leaves
½ tsp garam masala
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp salt
Mix these all together

Method
1.   Brown the minced meat and cook until the fat is cooked out.  Drain the fat off
2.   Heat oil on high.  Add cumin seed and cook for 30 seconds until it's sizzling
3.   Add onion and continue to cook for 2 minutes
4.   Add ginger garlic and fry for a minute or so until the water is cooked out.
5.   Add the frozen peas and cook for 2 minutes until hot
6.   Reduce heat to low and add the mince back to the pan
7.   Add spices and mix thoroughly
8.   Cook for five minutes, stirring frequently to avoid any sticking on the bottom of the pan.  Add one tbs water and mix if mixture starts to stick.  Repeat as necessary being careful not to create any sauce
9.   Remove from heat and leave to cool

For potato filling, peel cooked potatoes and crush with a fork, giving them a good mixing.  Alternatively peel and chop them into ¼ inch squares.
Follow steps 2 to 7 substituting the mince with the potato.  Cook for 2 – 3 minutes folding the mixture constantly to prevent it sticking.  Add 1 tbs water if things start to stick. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
I also like to use a simplified more traditional spice mixture excluding turmeric and mix powder but including amchoor powder and crushed red chilli.  You can experiment with this until you arrive at your ideal spice combination.

Samosa pastry
This is pretty standard and is featured already in a couple of samosa recipes on the site.  The quantities make 8 discs approximately 8 inches in diameter, enough for 16 samosas.

225gm plain flour
4 dsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ajwain or kalonji seeds (optional)
170ml WARM water

Method
1.   Mix all the dry ingredients together.
2.   Add the olive oil and rub through the flour until you have a breadcrumb texture
3.   Make a well and add 5oz (140ml) of the warm water
4.   Mix well to form a STIFF dough adding additional water a tsp at a time until all the flour is incorporated into the dough and the mixing bowl is clean.  Although the dough will be stiff it must be pliable and not dry.
5.   Add one more tsp of water and work this through the dough until all moisture has been absorbed.
6.   Cover with cling film and leave in a warm place for at least half an hour.  A good sign is when the dough starts to develop little white pimples.
7.   At this stage the dough can be frozen or put in the fridge but before use it must be allowed to (defrost if frozen and then) rest at room temperature for 3 hours or more before use.

I'm no expert on this dish but i'm sure there's someone out there who is. As with many dishes there are regional variations as well as a chef's own interpretation of a dish.  I have sampled a spoonful of friends' dhansak dishes while dining out at different restaurants which gives me an idea of what to expect based on my samplings.  But one thing i do know is a tasty dish when I eat one, whatever it might be called.  And this dish from CBM delivers just that - flavour in quantity and with plenty of depth.  Maybe one of the  dhansak experts on the site who actually cooks rather than just comments, would care to try it and then provide some constructive feedback. 
CBM has put up two videos on dhansak, one from Little India and the other from the Fatima restaurant.  The recipe i used to make my dish the other night is from CBM's second e-book (and no i'm not on commission  ;D).  I would say that the Little India recipe has a lot in common.
Anyway, the ingredients without giving too much away;



In went the spices, sugar, tomato paste and lemon juice for the initial singing followed up by half the base and a good heaped chef's of pre-cooked lentils.  Looks pretty thin here but it was in fact nearing the end of the first reduction 



So in then went the remainder of the base, the chopped pineapple followed by the tikka



Heat down and now left to simmer until reaching the right consistancy with the coriander being added just at the end of cooking.  The end result:



Again, looks quite fluid but in reality, the dhal hides the thickness of the sauce as the close ups show:





Decided to have these with it rather than rice, just for a change:



So here it is ready to serve:



The lighting for some reason made the dish look a shade darker in the last two pics:





Obviously the taste of the lentils was instant.  But depending on to how they are prepared they can be used to add more flavour to the dish.  Mine were prepared using Colin Grigson's friend's recipe, which calls for simple minimal spicing which produces great almost "meaty" tasting dhal with just a hint of spice.  A lovely dish in its own right.
Then came flooding through the sweetness immediately followed by heat which proceded to linger throughout the eating of the rest of the dish.  The sour lemon hit did happen but was much more in the background than i expected.  Maybe next time i need to up the lemon juice a  little just to bring the flavour on.  Inspite of the inclusion of tomato paste, which I know is a "no no" for some dhansak eaters, I thought it did little more than add to the colour.  Taste wise all 2tbs were not evident and had disappeared into the depths of the dish itself.  The pineapple, of which there was very little did add a sweet and sour note all of its own on the odd occasion when you happened across a piece.  Not a complex dish compared to some but it certainly had a different flavours within as well as an overall morish taste with no lack of depth.  A keeper for sure.

I regularly receive requests from work colleagues for onion bhajis, but more so for samosas, as their appearance tends to be somewhat rarer  :
As those of you who make them from scratch will know, that whilst the process is simple, the time it takes from start to finish if making any quantity is substantial.  Whenever i make them it's always a minimum of 2 dozen. I could easily make 4 dozen but these too would disappear in no time at all.  It's great that my fellow workers enjoy my food and want it as often as they can get it, but they fail to realise the work and more so the time involved in providing it.
In order to satisfy their yearnings whilst at the same time reduce the time period I spend in the kitchen, I decided to try and break the process down and see if i could spread the steps over  a day or so rather than having to do the whole thing in one go.
Filling, not a problem. Prepare one day and use whenever.
Dough and preparing the pastry for the cones - here was the issue.  The dough is no effort but the rolling out, filling and frying all together is, espeically when doing 2 dozen plus.
So i decided to prepare the dough and roll out the pastry and prepare as i normally do and then wrap, seal and leave for a day or so to see what impact it had on the pastry when i tried to make the cone, fill it, seal it and then fry it.  This is all with a view to freezing it in future so that the time spent at any one session is greatly reduced.

Here's the results:





Results are in: in terms of quality, all samosas devoured and loads of satisfied groans and ahh's received.  So no impact on product quality 
Time wise: I can knock out enough pastry for 24 cones in less than an hour without the need to then have to stand there, fill them, seal them and then fry them.
Definitely the way to go.  Final check is to make, freeze, defrost then finish them.
Yet again my guinea pigs get fed  ;D ;D and i don't spend the entire afternoon working on samosas  :

EDIT
I forgot to add, the 2 dozen i took in last week prior to the experimental batch, were accompanied by CBM's tamarind sauce diluted to make a dipping sauce.  They all raved about this and it too was promptly devoured and then added to the standing order along with the samosas 
I just knew it would make a perfect accompaniment to samosas and onion bhajis.  LUSH