Topic: Chicken and mushroom curry

[Kashmiri Bob]

Been eating mushrooms all this week.  Can't get enough of them.  Ditched the cans for fresh.  Just selecting 3-4 prime specimens loose each time at the supermarket.  So far have made chicken and mushroom, pork and mushroom, duck and mushroom, mushroom and mushroom, and looking forward to king prawn and mushroom, and balti(s).  All with thick cut garlic. Here's a couple of pics of the chicken and mushroom (a little ajwain in this one and just slightly under madras strength):









Rob 

[ottis]

Been eating mushrooms all this week.  Can't get enough of them.  Ditched the cans for fresh.  Just selecting 3-4 prime specimens loose each time at the supermarket.  So far have made chicken and mushroom, pork and mushroom, duck and mushroom, mushroom and mushroom, and looking forward to king prawn and mushroom, and balti(s).  All with thick cut garlic. Here's a couple of pics of the chicken and mushroom (a little ajwain in this one and just slightly under madras strength):

looks nice but i would be  worried with the amount of floating oil..maybe that is normal...I'm new on here so i don't really know...I don't know if my takeaway would serve me something like that with the amount of oil..if he did i would send it back....In my opinion i think it would look a lot better if you used less...Dose it really need it..Is that how you maybe get the T/W flavour..btw it looks amazing but it's just the oil that puts me off..I've only ever cooked the one curry so i have absolutely no experience.. sorry...Ottis...and the beat goes on

[Secret Santa]

They look seriously good Rob. I just can't master these lighter, orangey coloured curries. I don't see how it's possible if you burn the hell out of the spices at the start of cooking. So do you think you could give a whole recipe for say a madras? So I'd need exact specs for the base, the madras, the cooking techniques etc. I have to produce one of these lighter colured curries...it's really bugging me.

[Kashmiri Bob]

looks nice but i would be  worried with the amount of floating oil..maybe that is normal...I'm new on here so i don't really know...I don't know if my takeaway would serve me something like that with the amount of oil..if he did i would send it back....In my opinion i think it would look a lot better if you used less...Dose it really need it..Is that how you maybe get the T/W flavour..btw it looks amazing but it's just the oil that puts me off..I've only ever cooked the one curry so i have absolutely no experience.. sorry...Ottis...and the beat goes on

Hi Ottis.  Apols for delay in reply.  Know where you are coming from; does indeed seem on the oily side, used to thing the same myself.  However, the dish was prepared with approx' 1 cs (chef's spoon) of oil.  That's about 45 ml, which is (generally) about average for a TA curry.  Some dishes require more, some less. More oil of course can/will be present in the dish via the base gravy, pastes (e.g. garlic or garlic/ginger) and pre-cooked meat/veg.  But the oil you can see here has been separated during the cooking process.  I could have removed it (there are various ways to do this) but chose to "lift" the curry out of the oil, for serving. So most remained in the TA container. But you are right many chefs would not send out a TA with so much pooled oil.   It's notable though that some chefs won't separate any of the oil, and then you are kind of stuck with it. So a curry might not look particularly oily, but most definitely is.  A lot also depends on the type of dish being cooked.   

Rob 

[Kashmiri Bob]

They look seriously good Rob. I just can't master these lighter, orangey coloured curries. I don't see how it's possible if you burn the hell out of the spices at the start of cooking. So do you think you could give a whole recipe for say a madras? So I'd need exact specs for the base, the madras, the cooking techniques etc. I have to produce one of these lighter colured curries...it's really bugging me.

Madras would be Chewy's recipe SS.  The default orange colour in my efforts is down to my chef friend's mix powder.  Used for the base, pre-cooks and final dish.  Typically, a little extra turmeric in the pre-cooks helps the colour come out even more.  Chef has several mix powders. This one is his "TA" mix. It's very high in paprika (and cumin). The "restaurant" version I understand involves a home-made GM.








Rob 

[ottis]

They look seriously good Rob. I just can't master these lighter, orangey coloured curries. I don't see how it's possible if you burn the hell out of the spices at the start of cooking. So do you think you could give a whole recipe for say a madras? So I'd need exact specs for the base, the madras, the cooking techniques etc. I have to produce one of these lighter colured curries...it's really bugging me.

Madras would be Chewy's recipe SS.  The default orange colour in my efforts is down to my chef friend's mix powder.  Used for the base, pre-cooks and final dish.  Typically, a little extra turmeric in the pre-cooks helps the colour come out even more.  Chef has several mix powders. This one is his "TA" mix. It's very high in paprika (and cumin). The "restaurant" version I understand involves a home-made GM.
Rob 

Thank for your reply I understand now, fair enough about the oil thing..I just hope someday i will be able to cook like yourself..As you said the oils coming from base sauce some other pastes and also pre cooked chicken lamb etc  will give you the excess oil..i've had currys like that before..i'm just a fussy eater so just ignore me...as i said the currys you have up look amazing  you should be proud of them..i would be...I'm dreading posting my first pics..I await the onslaught lol...anyway thanks for sharing your recipes.. i for one will definitely be trying them..Ottis..and the beat goes on

[JerryM]

Bengali Bob,

very jealous at that pick and description. top of my list when i get time to make base next. adding in the mushroom to a basic chicken balti will be heaven for me. as you've found has to be fresh (and i think the brown version). i like the light color of the thick garlic slices too. over cooking it spoils that delicate layers of flavour that i think brum57 used to sum balti.

those are big tubs of mix but very nice colour.

[Kashmiri Bob]

Thank for your reply I understand now, fair enough about the oil thing..I just hope someday i will be able to cook like yourself..As you said the oils coming from base sauce some other pastes and also pre cooked chicken lamb etc  will give you the excess oil..i've had currys like that before..i'm just a fussy eater so just ignore me...as i said the currys you have up look amazing  you should be proud of them..i would be...I'm dreading posting my first pics..I await the onslaught lol...anyway thanks for sharing your recipes.. i for one will definitely be trying them..Ottis..and the beat goes on

Post those pics ottis. We like looking at curry pics on here.  I think my first pics were of a stack of half-burned popadoms.  Recipe wise I generally use pretty much those in the recipe section, and a few from (e)books, occasionally.  I also have a couple of friends who are chefs, but their recipes are pretty much the same thing anyway.  Hope your efforts go well.

Rob

Worth watching all of Chewy's videos if you haven't already.  Lots to be learned from them, including technique.