Getting very interested in trying this base soon. 

Is the original post the full recipe, or should the many pages following it be read ? 

May I suggest that the original post be edited to include all the unambiguous and any extra detail.

Yep andy I would agree with your judgment here level spoons for me, any more would over spice the base for my taste.

Standard Chef spoon is now standard 30grams according to Julian Volgt in 2012, old style is 80g being fazed out?

2 tablespoons 1/8 cup    1 ounce 28.3 grams


My opinion is Stick with Jb's original recipie no adjustments need to be made here

Thanks for sharing JB. Sounds really promising.

Glad you are impressed MA, and glad you kept an open mind re: green/red peppers in a base. 

Quote from: Donald Brasco on July 31, 2014, 10:18 PM

Quote from: jb on July 23, 2014, 08:36 PM


The chef then explained that in the takeaway they leave the gravy like this(it's quite thick) and then add water to thin when they need it.It should be very thin,like watery soup.However when it hits the hot pan it will thicken.Finally take another pan,add a chef's spoon of oil and add a very finely chopped garlic clove and brown it.Tip this into the gravy(rinse the garlic pan out with a spoon of gravy).This seemed to give the gravy a fantastic smokey like flavour.Simmer the sauce for about half an hour and the oil should begin to rise.

Is the watering down of the base to "very thin like watery soup" done before the garlic is added and cooked for half an hour, or is the garlic added and cooked for 30 mins then later when the base is to be cooked with it's diluted till very thin? Seems like what's written above could mean either?

The thick base is diluted FIRST and then the garlic tarka is added and the base re boiled.

Quote from: haldi on July 31, 2014, 07:13 PM

Quote from: Secret Santa on July 31, 2014, 04:02 PM
There's something decidedly wrong with you guy's tastes if you think a single tarka'd clove of garlic can have such a profound effect on a 3kg base as you appear to be claiming - you're all barking (or super tasters)!  ;D

I used a single clove in a single portion of base and that gave a noticeable smokey garlic flavour to the base but even that virtually disappeared once blended and cooked into the curry. Something very amiss here and I'm not having it that it's just me!    ;D

It's the base coupled with the tarka
Follow the complete recipe
The only tricky part is when frying the garlic
Get it to a nut brown colour then pour it immediatelyinto your base
Then quickly wash out the pan with some of your curry gravy and put that back into the main pot
Boil the whole thing again

Seriously, this is amazing
I have tried hundreds of base recipes and had loads of demos
Nothing has ever come close to this result

For me the end result is 100% bir gravy

Just a thought
Have you ever had a sample gravy from a takeaway/restaurant?
Maybe you don't know what it should taste like
It also could be a regional thing
Where are you from?
Or maybe you overcooked the garlic

I don't want to rush into any old recipes with this
I shall wait for JB's madras recipe when he can get it
Or try his basic curry
I can't believe I have actually managed to do this
I know it's silly but I've been on an "up" all week because of it

Well pleased for you Haldi,if anyone is in a position to judge if this is good is yourself.I know how hard you've tried to get into kitchens and have demos etc,just like myself.Actually I've been sitting at work all week thinking about this base and what I'm going to ask next time I'm in the kitchen,so you're not alone!!

Of course I will get the recipes for the chef's main courses and sides when I can.The thing is though I watched the chef cooking when I was in the kitchen,all of his dishes were cooked using the usual range of ingredients(apart from the special chilli sauce which I will ask about).So I think you can use any of your usual recipes at the moment,the most important thing is the base,this is where 'that' flavour comes from.