Are we being too harsh on ourselves?

[Derek Dansak]

Hi fridgedoc, to my mind that proves there are trade secrets closely guarded as it forms the backbone of there business. It also displays evidence that there are preparations that are closely guarded, done in the afternoon / daytime. Its significant that none of the you tube videos ever show chefs doing these preparations. instead they just show the chefs cooking the final curry. presumably these demos dont risk revealing these secrets.

[Derek Dansak]

In response to the original question of the thread , the harsher the better as far as i am concerned  ;D  its the only way to really achieve a perfect clone , i believe it can be done without insider knowledge, i swear i am getting closer every month. its really just about playing around with the spices, and key ingredients. we are not missing any key ingredients. 

[Malc.]

George, unfortunately my quest for cooking BIR has only just started, so I am quite a way behind you guys. As a family, we rarely order in anymore. This is largely down to ever changing restaurants and TA's. The many offerings we have around us, simply don't offer food to the standard we have had in the past.

The trouble is my curry history is largely based on two restaurants. One which sadly closed after many years of service and the other the Indian Garden. Both of which have given me a discerning palette for curry.

I agree with the sentiments towards the less exceptional restaurants, no matter how we refer to them. Up until only recently (My Onion Bhaji Quest) I would have struggled to truly say my cooking could exceed the quality of these BIR's. But the IG Kitchen Demo and my IG Breakdown recipe have proven to me that this is indeed possible.

That missing something? Well perhaps that's another topic but I do believe it is just a matter of identifying the right pieces and putting them together in the right sequence. It is not a specific flavour that you can add from a spice jar. Infact, this is another topic and I will start one for it.

[Malc.]

to my mind that proves there are trade secrets closely guarded

But you could also consider that perhaps they are doing something that regulation says they are not meant to or hiding a process they would rather people did not know, like the amount of colouring being used, or the use of a paste etc.

[Razor]

to my mind that proves there are trade secrets closely guarded

But you could also consider that perhaps they are doing something that regulation says they are not meant to or hiding a process they would people did not know, like the amount of colouring being used, or the use of a paste etc.

My thoughts too.  The secrecy could be more to do with hiding 'dubious practice rather than creating the magic.

I also agree with you DD that it's good to be harsh on ourselves, it keeps us on our toes but, I don't want to be the mouse on the mouse wheel, continuously running round and round with no conclusion

[emin-j]

Are we being too harsh on ourselves?
Yes I reckon so , I have two T/A within 1/4 mile of me and they can produce really nice Curries ( Madras ) but they also produce crap Curries some nights so any ' Secret Processes ' don't always work  :-X I consistently ( and many members on the forum no doubt ) make a better Madras Curry than any of them so I don't think I am going to learn much from them  : BUT there is a Bangladeshi T/A that is a 25mile round trip by Motorway from me and I just cant touch their flavour , never a bad Curry so their is more to learn ( their Bhajis are crap tho    )

[Secret Santa]

For most BIRs output, I don't detect any special BIR flavour at all.

Yup, any special flavour and aroma that was there in the past is now truly dead and gone as far as I can tell, in my locality at least.

you might be able to sing, play an instrument, do cake icing or plaster a wall

Hey! Have you been spying on me George? I can sing, play the ukelele, ice cakes and plaster like a pro! Uncanny!     ;D

[George]

Hey! Have you been spying on me George? I can sing, play the ukelele, ice cakes and plaster like a pro! Uncanny!     ;D

You must be a skilled individual indeed! I can't sing or play any musical instrument whatsoever. Any attempt at fancy cake icing would look very amateur, as did my attempt at plastering a wall.

[jimmy2x]

hello all, aint been on too much last couple of months. i work away from home and been more away than home, too damn busy.

I finished off the last portion of my base 2 days ago so its base making time again. I love this part of making a curry, a flick through all the base recipies, decieding which to try this time, reading the reviews of the base ect.

i know what my favourite base is so far but wont bother saying, we all have our own ideas. And this is just the point everyone likes diffrent bases and taste, as much as i wouldnt eat a korma someone else would swear by it.

We appear much of the time to be running around in circles missing the big picture ie do i personaly like it. Ive had such diffrent taste and quality of a madras in 100s of bir's that ive come to the conclusion there realy is no elusive taste to be found.

every recipe and base and spice mixture on here pretty much has the same standard items, then on top we give our own twists, im sure this is the same in any bir. We cant see the wood for the trees.

[Stephen Lindsay]

Love the common sense Jimmy - a wonderful antidote to some of the more mystical posts that appear from time to time.

It ain't magic it's just cooking.