Topic: How to achieve high cooking temperatures at home.

[chewytikka]

To compensate for the lack of power, I cook my Madras on high from the get go, my ally pan is very hot, the oil is very hot before I begin
and I'll use a lid at the end to get even more heat into a it. as in my the real time video recipe.

Yes, some curries are cooked in 3-4 minutes, especially if it's just sauce and precooked meat.
All your doing is a quick tarka in hot oil, adding the meat then adding the already warmed garabi
mixing and heating through.

cheers Chewy

[DalPuri]

and I'll use a lid at the end to get even more heat into a it.

Yes, some curries are cooked in 3-4 minutes, especially if it's just sauce and precooked meat.

Thanks Chewy, A lid is a must at home to increase the heat, glad to hear you use one. 

And 3-4 mins makes much more sense if the pro kitchens have twice as much power, although none of the videos are this short.
Its an odd one. 

I still believe that most people struggling for depth aren't cooking their curries hard enough.

The next time someone makes a curry, stick a lid on and see if you notice a more intense flavour. 

Or better still, cook a main dish curry in a pressure cooker, not just your base.

[spiceyokooko]

The other point is the control of the heat, some people are saying you need constant heat, I don't quite get this, apart from the obvious.

Given that I've mentioned this a couple of times in this thread, allow me to clarify what I mean by constant heat.

The lower the output of your burner, the lower the heat will be. When adding cold ingredients the temperature will drop in the pan and the lower the heat source the longer it will take for the pan contents to return to the original temperature. The higher the output of your burner, the higher the heat and the shorter the time it will take for the contents of the pan to come back to the original temperature.

Thus, by having higher output burners, and therefore higher heat output the less temperature drops the pan will suffer when adding cold ingredients therefore producing a more constant cooking temperature.

That's what I mean by constant heat.

[chonk]

Have been told that I'm using a 7kw (ca.) hotplate/hob. If I'd use maximum heat all the time, whole spices would burn literally within seconds. I use medium heat.

[DalPuri]

Have been told that I'm using a 7kw (ca.) hotplate/hob. If I'd use maximum heat all the time, whole spices would burn literally within seconds. I use medium heat.

But thats only when you start the dish, not throughout cooking. Adding onions etc is what stops whole spices from burning.
And a lot of people on here aren't cooking in a traditional way like yourself, which is a shame. 

[chonk]

Yes, meant that (:

Powdered spices can be dissolved in little water, too. But back in the days, when I started out, and used our equipment for the first time (and didn't know anything about the pretty high heat, or about the hints and tricks to avoid burning), it ruined my tadka completely ;D

Will post some recipes and photos soon, so maybe some of them will try it out sometime (:

[Garabi Army]

If you can cook, you can cook a curry on any heat source, but if your going to cook a 100 in 4hrs you need high output (btu/hr) burners. a simple fact.

 ... Common sense is priceless CT 

Sadly I find this such an interesting argument 

I think we need a Heston Blumenthal to explain the science behind all this. I don't see why we shouldn't get an intense flavour from a lower flame cooked over a longer period, we are only talking about an extra 5 minutes or so   
Even on a bog standard domestic hob you will get flames, ... if you really want flames  :

[DalPuri]

and is anyone sure if

[goncalo]

DalPuri educating the curry-recipes community since October 27, 2011, 01:00:16 AM.

That was a very good read DP!

[DalPuri]

DalPuri educating the curry-recipes community since October 27, 2011, 01:00:16 AM.

I think you'll be alone with that view Goncalo  ;D
But thanks anyway.