Topic: BIR smell from your favourite restuarant...

[Stu-pot]

The smell we get when pasing by our favourite restaurants in the afternoon when they're most probably cooking their base gravy, may almost certainly NOT be the smell we THINK our base gravy SHOULD END UP SMELLING AND TASTING OF. !!!

REASON:  The extracting ducting from my kitchen to the garden is coated in "OLD OILS etc"'.

This gives out a combined smell of "The base gravy; Whole spices; Garam Masala and largely from general cooking of the restaurant/takeaway dishes" which is I've discovered is "THE BIR SMELL" which we all love and want to replicate?

Realising this, I proceeded with many experiments which I've got good results:

All you need to do to prove this is; cook your normal base gravy, smell the extractor exhaust outside.  IT WONT BE GOOD!  Then cook your normal curry. Again, smell the exhaust but it probably won't be quite right! Then in oil cook some Garam Masala whole spices; Ie. A little Cinammon, Cloves, Green Cardamon, Star Anise & Mace.   Then give it a day or two, turn the extractor on, pop outside and smell what comes out and I guarantee you'll be amazed !!!!!!!!!!!!

It's BIR...  Not only the smell is BIR but also the taste of your curries.

I'll report more when I have time

Cheers
Stupot

[littlechilie]

I wouldn't waste your time Stu, bir smell and flavour is only truly achievable when not cooking it yourself. Overloading your senses and house with spice will all distract from what you gain in true bir,it also helps if you have a few pints beforehand like when you visit a good bir restaurant.

This is why mild dishes are easily replicated an also rice and naan, but dishes requiring a high level of spice are continually being chased around forums, Yes we all get 90 percent there even 100 percent of i leave a dish a few days then take it to work and heat it.

Easier to order a madras or vindaloo if its true bir flavour your after, and cook the rest of your meal beforehand. Images all look great to the forum but they really tell us shit about how the dish tastes. Imo anyhow.

[Stu-pot]

You're dead rite mate...  I guess we all hate our own curries. Why do we keep bothering with this crazy obsession?  We all go on and on and on and round and round and round about the same old crap and end up back at square one!
My problem is I've no choice but to Keep trying because the restaurants in the South of England are serving up total rubbish and calling it curry.  Theyre getting worse or are my taste buds DEAD from years of experimenting with Base & Curry sauce!!
LC I'm done, you're rite, I'm gonna chuck all this shit out and move onto cooking English dishes.

[littlechilie]

Thanks for the reply Stu, I will be cooking some Chinese tonight, I have over the years been a strong follower of Khoan, right from his first Ebook and there are so many great recipes on here to be enjoyed.

What is the point of chasing around a dish we are are nearly never happy with, when people eating the dish we are cooking tell us it's 100 percent.

As I said above if I take a dish in to work and heat it, the boys are always asking how I get that restaurant smell and taste. I believe cooking my own curry has even diminished my

[George]

All you need to do to prove this is; cook your normal base gravy, smell the extractor exhaust outside.  IT WONT BE GOOD!  Then cook your normal curry. Again, smell the exhaust but it probably won't be quite right! Then in oil cook some Garam Masala whole spices; Ie. A little Cinammon, Cloves, Green Cardamon, Star Anise & Mace.   Then give it a day or two, turn the extractor on, pop outside and smell what comes out and I guarantee you'll be amazed !!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sorry but I can't understand what you are suggesting at all. You don't say how long to cook the garam masala for, or what to do with it when it's finished. Are you suggesting to cook it for a 'day or two'?

[Peripatetic Phil]

All you need to do to prove this is; cook your normal base gravy, smell the extractor exhaust outside.  IT WONT BE GOOD!  Then cook your normal curry. Again, smell the exhaust but it probably won't be quite right! Then in oil cook some Garam Masala whole spices; Ie. A little Cinammon, Cloves, Green Cardamon, Star Anise & Mace.   Then give it a day or two, turn the extractor on, pop outside and smell what comes out and I guarantee you'll be amazed !!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sorry but I can't understand what you are suggesting at all. You don't say how long to cook the garam masala for, or what to do with it when it's finished. Are you suggesting to cook it for a 'day or two'?

I think that the idea is to cook the GM for the normal time (a few tens of seconds, to a minute or so at most); what you do with it subsquently really doesn't matter since the oil will already be adhering to the filter of the extractor fan, waiting to be broadcast once it has matured and the fan been turned on.

** Phil.

[Stu-pot]

As I said above if I take a dish in to work and heat it, the boys are always asking how I get that restaurant smell and taste. I believe cooking my own curry has even diminished my

[Stu-pot]

All you need to do to prove this is; cook your normal base gravy, smell the extractor exhaust outside.  IT WONT BE GOOD!  Then cook your normal curry. Again, smell the exhaust but it probably won't be quite right! Then in oil cook some Garam Masala whole spices; Ie. A little Cinammon, Cloves, Green Cardamon, Star Anise & Mace.   Then give it a day or two, turn the extractor on, pop outside and smell what comes out and I guarantee you'll be amazed !!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sorry but I can't understand what you are suggesting at all. You don't say how long to cook the garam masala for, or what to do with it when it's finished. Are you suggesting to cook it for a 'day or two'?

I think that the idea is to cook the GM for the normal time (a few tens of second, to a minute or so at most); what you do with it subsquently really doesn't matter since the oil will already be adhering to the filter of the extractor fan, waiting to be broadcast once it has matured and the fan been turned on.

** Phil.

That's exactly what I meant Phil....    Sorry for confussion George

[Stu-pot]

I was always confused so thinking other curry heads may also be confused, that when walking past an Indian Restuarant or takeaway in the afternoon, knowing that they are boiling away their onion gravy, the smell was fantastic BUT nothing like the smell of the base that I make or the same as their gravy. Then it dawned on me the smell from the extractor is the combination of all three aroma's : Base, GM & general cooking of curries that get caught in the exhaust. 
I posted this because for a long time now, I've been trying to achieve this smell in my base gravy.... Dumb I know but just in case any other cook is as dumb as me, this info may help!!!
Good luck

[George]

I think that the idea is to cook the GM for the normal time (a few tens of seconds, to a minute or so at most); what you do with it subsquently really doesn't matter since the oil will already be adhering to the filter of the extractor fan, waiting to be broadcast once it has matured and the fan been turned on.

Thanks for trying to help but I'm not persuaded this is the answer to what stu-pot is actually doing. You are saying the oil doesn't need to be used in the curry, or even heated up, while you go outside to sniff the exhaust of the extractor fan, but that traces of oil will have been attached to the filter from one or two days before. And it's still eleven days to go until 1 April.