Quote from: DARTHPHALL on December 22, 2005, 11:57 PM
I've found Cardamom pod,Star anise,White Cumin seed & Mustard seed.

Did you also get a sample of curry base from your local? tell me more....

I tried doing a close up but me camera aint up to it, this cardamom must have been in the base when it was blended cos all that is left of this one is just one of the panels that makes up the pod, i think the other reason it looks odd is cos it's been stain with turmeric during the cooking process, which leads me to think maybe it was put in at the start.
I recon this will be another addition to the base when i get round to making it

Quote from: DARTHPHALL on December 23, 2005, 12:35 AM
Sometimes i get the feeling these whole seeds are only put in to give a visual impression of quality & obviously to give the customers of the BIR that feeling that they are actually using authentic Indian Spices as i think they can get all they need from fully ground, a few seeds here & there is not going to make that much difference IMHO. 

I must respectfuly disagree, The base sauce that i got from the bir was straight from the big bubbling pot of gravy on the cooker top and it was this base sauce that i found the cardamom, when a cardamom pod is cooked in liquid i will become soft and when it is blended it will loose all the seeds through out the liquid and add flavour to the base sauce, whether you use 1 or 21 cardamoms you will still add flavour to the base.
The bir's use whole cardamom in there pilau rice for flavour so they have them on site.

Hi John,,through this something has dawned on me.

1.Has anyone used several whole Spices instead of just ground & when you blend do you end up with some fragments in the Curry like we have both found.

2. And by using whole Spices do you end up with a different flavor. IE with our finding of Cardamom Pods,i find whole pods have a much more powerfull smell & flavor,this i also find of many whole Spices.
I've tended to add at the very end perhaps i should put the Spices at the Base making stage &/OR the Curry making stage. This is something worth investigating over the Christmass period.

  Have we inadvertently stumbled upon another way to get a small increment closer to copying our BIR's 100%.

I wouldn't be to disheartened Pete,I've been making Curries for many years, but as a serious BIR curry maker for just under two! ;D
I'm incredibly happy  ;D   with my own personal progress & feel confident it will improve.
I've got the Base colour right (Thanks to my local BIR giving some helpfull info) they have more than likely left out their Chefs Spice mix.

Question : Is this the only missing component,not Curry powder,what is their definition of Curry powder is it just a blend of particular Spices which make the Curries a little more individual to various BIR's across the country ? This could be why we are all struggling to get it 100% right, i would seem to be a very logical conclusion.
This brings up another good question the next time we are in our local "could you recommend a Spice mixture i could use to make my home-made Curries taste better"? ;D