Topic: Turnips!! eh!!

[After8]

This is my first proper post, and its bit of a a daft one, but I'll say it anyway.

I've just made up a batch of base, using the KD recipe and method, mainly because it gives the amounts of onions in weight, and it's worked for me before. I've incorporated the spices and stuff from the Darth base, because it comes top in the pole and the results were very pleasing - the base tasted nice on it's own and I have no doubt I will be able to make some good curries with it, so that's already a result as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway, at no point did it have that same smell as an Indian restaurant (you know the one). I live about 1/2 mile from a take away, and 'the smell' usually wafts over at about 4.30 PM, long before it's open to the punters, which is when it seems to die down. This suggests to me that, if there is a key ingredient that I'm missing, then it must go in during the 'preparation, rather than when the action starts later in the evening. I reasoned, if it's a spice, then someone would have recognised it. I'm taking a wild guess that its some sort of vegetable being cooked in during the base stage.

I've also noticed, when at my Mam's for sunday lunch, that the mashed turnip has a smell slightly similar to the elusive restaurant smell, not identical, but closer than anything to come out of my kitchen. So I wonder, is there turnip, or some relative like mooli, in the base.

[Chilli Prawn]

Ah ha! A8,  the mystical turnip theory   Well believe it or not Turnips are used in India, especially the North.  However they must be white turnips not Swede or Mangleworzels, which are yellow and usually mashed in UK.  I think they give an unusual peppery taste in the background.  So you could replace the Mooli with white Turnip in the base mix, which is I guess what some BIRs may do to keep costs down.

Suggestion.  get a small white turnip and cook it in some of your base mix until it is soft, then puree it, and then add a little of this mixture to your regular bas and see what happens.

Incidentally. Shab Degh is a famous Royal dish from the North; it comprises Lamb Koftahs, Lamb chops, and baby white turnips the size of golf ball, all cooked overnight together in a rich thin gravy.  This is the bee's wotsits I tell you :

Happy Cooking
CP

[After8]

I've made the base now, but I'm going to get some mooli and boil them up, then puree them and add this a bit at a time to a warmed-up base. I also noticed that the Bruce Edwards base contains radishes, which are related to turnips.

After8

[Cory Ander]

Hello After8 and welcome,

Pat Chapman uses 50g of white radish (mooli) in his "Special Balti Base Sauce" in his "Balti Curry Cookbook" (an excellent book, which I highly recommend).

I have used this curry base, many times, and I also recommend it.  Being a mildly spiced, creamy (he uses milk too), curry base, it is especially good for mild curry dishes (like Korma) but can also be used for any other curry.  He also uses 50g of celeriac (the celery root - which has a more intense flavour and aroma than celery stalks) in this base.  This quantity is used to make about 450 ml of the curry base.

White radishes ("mooli") are large, white (unsurprisingly!), look like parsnips (but with a paler, smoother skin), and are very mild... unlike red radishes (as prescribed by Bruce Edwards) which are much smaller, red (unsurprisingly!), pretty damned hot, and are otherwise quite different to white radishes (albeit from the same vegetable family).

I found that white radish and celeriac add a very nice (vegetable!) flavour to the curry base.  However, I very (very!) much doubt they add much to that elusive "BIR taste and smell"....but, as always, I may be wrong!

Anyway, I very much look forward to hearing of your results and analysese!

Regards,

[After8]

Hi Cory,

I copied the spice mix and some other veggie ingredients from Darth's base, so the celery's in there. It's already a really nice base, but it'll be a while before I get to use it as I'm flat out with work. Ironically, when I was knocking it up, I had to get a fix from a couple of tesco's ping meal currys, which were not on with mine.

Will let you know the result whihc will be significant either way.

After8

[DARTHPHALL]

Good luck 
Good to see more unusual experimentation.

[After8]

Well, I got some mooli, boiler it for absolutely ages, sniffed it, tasted it, and then chucked it in the bin. It smells a bit like broccoli and tastes sligthly bitter.

There's one off the list.

After8

[Chilli Prawn]

After8  I would stick with the Mooli, it may taste unpleasant but it is an essential ingredient for base mixes and some veggie curries.  Once it is in you won't notice it as it acts more like a flavour enhancer.  I am not keen on Radishes as they add too muck heat and bitterness.

Good luck
CP