It makes me wonder, having just read rave review after rave review at amazon.co.uk on Kris Dhillon's "The Curry Secret" book. Are these people on a different planet to me? How can they say these recipes produce curries just like from a BIR? You can see from the lists of ingredients that many/most of the recipes are not going to work. And they don't. How are some people so easily pleased?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/books/0716020548/customer-reviews/202-3061216-7568612

One review, in particular, is of indirect interest:  jamesbate from Yorkshire says: "I think the book is particularly important now as I have noticed that restaurant currys are beginning to change as they experiment with their own recipes to get competitive edge in a mature market. I feel the consistency and flavour of some of the traditionals are being lost. It is important to keep hold of the authentic restaurant flavours of the eightees and nineties and this book captures that." I think he has a point, there. Would you agree about some traditional flavours being lost? But I don't agree with jamesbate that the KD book captures and documents the flavour of BIRs in the 80s and 90s, in the first place. If the book had correctly recorded the flavour, then there would never have been a need for this forum!

Regards
George

I never really ate restaurant curry in the eighties but if it tasted like any of the currys that the KD book produces I'm glad I didn't?

Does anybody know where KD is now?  Does she still run a restaurant.  Wouldn't it be great if she could be tracked down and got some in-put from her?

Quote from: Ader1 on January 10, 2006, 12:57 PM
Does anybody know where KD is now?  Does she still run a restaurant.  Wouldn't it be great if she could be tracked down and got some in-put from her?

Good question. How can anybody like Kris Dhillon, Pat Chapman or even David Smith (curryhouse.co.uk) not be aware of this forum, for a start, and resist joining in the debate? They are all, after all, very well known in the arena of BIR recipes, being many folks 'best hope' for recipes before this forum trounced all of them with MUCH better recipes. Perhaps these authors do lurk and even contribute under some screen name.

I read that Kris is a woman. Who knows? Which restaurant?The author could be a man, woman or a committee. I don't trust anyone to tell the truth, just like the Curry Secret book gives us the basic 'secret' about a base sauce, but doesn't give much more away.

Regards
George 

lol only 1 negatave review from the amazon website on thebook

Rubbish, February 4, 2005
Reviewer: cb22616 from Watchet, Somerset United Kingdom 
Absolute rubbish. I wasted far too much time preparing the "curry sauce" Used it and wasted some perfectly good chicken breasts, mushrooms and peas. If you grew up (and liked) Vesta curries go for it. If not avoid like the plague

the price of the book says it all....

i read somewhere that Kris was last seen heading to Aus

I'm KD.  I'm sorry I meant Spartacus! 

I couldn't resist that.....

Let's track her down.  But how?  Or if you read this KD, please reveal yourself or indeed, any of the other curry connoisseurs - the same......

Quote from: Mark J on January 10, 2006, 06:14 PM
i read somewhere that Kris was last seen heading to Aus

I read that too, probably on the same web page, wherever that was. But what credence can anyone attach to it? It would make a good excuse for the author(s) of The Curry Secret keeping a low profile, if that's their policy, as seems the case.

Regards
George

I wrote to the curry secret's publisher
They wouldn't give me her address but said she now resided in Australia and could not be contacted.
It was them that told me she was a woman
Silly, really
She could have easily written a follow up book
I would probably buy it too!

Pete

Ah, so it was you that discovered the Australian connection. It might be worth asking the publisher if they could forward a letter or eMail to "Kris Dhillon" or whoever they presumably send royalties to.  At the very least, you could point out the existence of this forum just in case the author(s) is/are not aware and not already lurking here and at other BIR-related curry forums.

Regards
George