Hi Jerry, you're up late... Good man.
Sugar... It really is a tricky one for me to justify in curries, but it does work for me, whether it be white sugar, mango chutney, jaggery etc.
It does seem like a 'cheat', a 'cop out', a 'fudge' though, and I'm struggling somewhat with the 'BIR morality' of it. In all the videos I've seen of TA chefs cooking curries, I don't think I can remember sugar being added (CTM/Korma etc being the exception).
Is the natural balance of sweetness supposed to be obtained by the skilful caramelisation/Maillard of ingredients (notably the base gravy pre-prep, and the cooking of base gravy in the pan fry)?
In good TA/Restaurant curries I've had, I don't immediately think 'this flavour isn't balanced enough and needs more sweetness'. So, where is this gap being filled from?
Is it a gap only for my tastebuds, i.e. I may require a little extra sweetness, or is it technique or ingredients the BIRs (and more experienced ameuters than I) are using?
All that being said, I know that sugar is used readily (and authentically) in Asian cuisines (e.g. Thai,Korean) to achieve balance of flavours... Sweet vs bitter vs sour vs hot vs umami (sic), so from that perspective I feel a little less guilty of adding a tsp.