Topic: Posh Restaurant Chicken Tikka Masala

[merrybaker]

Last night I went to a cooking class by the chef of Palace of Asia, a fancy IR in New Jersey.? It has a good reputation, but I've never eaten there.? Unfortunately the class was at a grocery store, so I couldn?t snoop around the restaurant kitchen.

The chef made 4 items:

Tandoori Chicken - Chef showed us how to make the marinade, but then cooked marinated chicken that had been brought from the restaurant.? Since there was no tandoor in the grocery, he baked the chicken at 350 degrees F. and it came out pale and pretty much tasteless.? I asked if perhaps they should use 350 degrees Celsius rather than Fahrenheit, but another student said, ?No, that would be about a million degrees Fahrenheit!??
 
Paratha - 1 cup melted butter to 4 cups flour, plus water, salt, baking powder.? More butter (lots) drizzled on both sides as they cooked.? I?m scheduling my angioplasty next week!

Vegetable Pulav - the usual Basmati, spices, veg, nothing to write home about.

Chicken Tikka Masala -? This was pretty good, but it?s not something I have much experience eating.? The recipe may sound exact, but the chef often just poured in what he wanted.

At one point he reached back to the counter and grabbed a small container of sauce and poured it in.? It was an ingredient that wasn?t listed on the recipe.? Aha!? I asked him what it was, and he said it was just the same ingredients that were already in the frying pan (onion, ginger, garlic) that he had cooked earlier and pureed.? I could see from the color and texure that it was Curry Sauce Base.? After class I cornered him and asked again what was in it.? Again he said onions, ginger, garlic.? Any green pepper?? He said no.? Any carrot?? He said no.? Do you use it in other curries.? He said yes.? When he started talking to someone else, I grabbed a spoon and had a taste of what was left in the container.? Yes, definitely Curry Sauce Base, similiar to Dhillon?s, but with more chilli and without that long-cooked flavor.? Also, there was no oil floating on top! ? No surprise that it didn?t have ?the taste.?? The final CTM didn?t have ?the taste,? either.? Nevertheless, I?m giving the recipe in case there?s?a clue that can?help someone else.

Chicken Tikka Masala - Palace of India

1 lb. chicken breast

1 Tbl. vegetable oil (more)
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 tsp. minced ginger
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
 
1/4 tsp. ground cumin (more)
1/4 tsp. ground coriander (more)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. red chilli powder
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 cup onion cubes, about 3/4?
1/2 cup green pepper cubes, about 3/4?
(About 1/2 cup Curry Base Sauce)

2 Tbl. tomato puree
1 cup heavy cream
Tomato wedges
Chopped fresh coriander
Few drops red food color, if desired

Marinate chicken in tandoori marinade for a minimum of 3 hours.? Roast until almost done.

Heat oil in pan.? Add chopped onion and saute until golden brown.? Add ginger and garlic and saute until brown.? (He said this is the most important part!)? Add spices, then cubed onion & green pepper, and Curry Base Sauce.? Cook about 5 minutes, but do not overcook vegetables.? Add tomato puree and heavy cream and chicken (& red color, if using), and cook until sauce becomes thick.? Stir in tomato wedges and garnish with chopped coriander.

[CurryCanuck]

FYI...a lot of IR use  cream of tomato soup as an added base flavor in CTM ( although they would adamantly deny it if you asked them ) .

[ghanna]

Dear Mary
thank you for the recipe.
very  brave of you to corner him,  and as well to take the chance and taste the sauce.
well done
thanks
ghanna

i know a very good recipe for challah bread if you are interested.i know that you are a very good baker specially bread

[curryqueen]

Hi Mary,

Interesting post.  I have had several take aways when holidaying in Florida and I am sorry to say that they were extremely expensive and were not right.  By that the flavour was not the same that I get here in England.

Baker eh!  Have you got a recipe for sourdough bread?

[merrybaker]

i know a very good recipe for challah bread if you are interested.i know that you are a very good baker specially bread

ghanna, of course I?d like your challah recipe.? How could I refuse such a thoughtful offer?? Thank you.

Baker eh!? Have you got a recipe for sourdough bread?

curryqueen, funny you should mention that.? ?Sourdough perfection is like curry perfection -- something to strive for but probably never reach. ? Recently I?ve been using this recipe from Jack Lang.? I?ll give you the link because it goes into great detail with very helpful photos.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=27634

The amount of sourness changes according to the propotion of water, type of flour, temperature during rising, refrigeration before baking, etc.? But this is a good basic bread and takes well to additions of olives, walnuts, blue cheese, etc.

If you don?t have a starter (barm), you might want to try these instructions. They were the only ones that worked for me:

http://www.kyleskitchen.net/barm_comment.htm

Let me know if I can help.?

-Mary

[ghanna]

Dear Mary
it is a very nice bread ,very soft, very airy.
i hope you will like it

sponge ingredients:
50g warm water
25g plain flour? ( i know that in the U.S.A there are different kinds of flour , i prefer KING ARTHUR )
7g dry yeast ( the one that you mix with the flour? i.e? no dissolving in water )
make the sponge and leave for at least 20minutes to rise.

dough ingredients:
50g water
50g whole egg or for a more softer dough just egg yolks
25g oil any kind
25g sugar ,but i prefer mild honey, or any kind of syrup, her in the U.K i use a very very nice syrup? called GOLDEN SYRUP
0.5 teaspoon salt
melt the above over very very low heat until melted, leave to cool a little .it must not be hot or other wise the yeast will die.it should be around 30 C degree?
mix in the sponge and as much flour to make a dough.(stiff dough will make the braids keep their shape in the oven )
leave to rise in a warm temperature until it double in size.
cut into three ropes . each rope should measure about? 35cm
BRAID THEM
brush them with an? egg that been mixed with pinch of salt
leave to rise again until doubled
brush them again with the egg mixture, sprinkle any kind of seeds on the top ,i prefer poppy seeds.
and bake it in? a 200 C degree oven? until it is done
the bread will be? very shiny ,very brown in colour ,the smell and taste is out of this world.
could you please come back and tell us about it .
thank you in advance
GOD bless you
ghanna


if you are not in a restricted diet  you can use butter instead of oil,and milk instead of water

[Blondie]

Hi All,

Who is Mary and what is Sourdough and what does it have to do with British Indian Restaurant cooking,

Cheers,

Blondie

[merrybaker]

Who is Mary and what is Sourdough and what does it have to do with British Indian Restaurant cooking,

Oops!? Sorry about that.:-[? I started this thread on CTM, and others recognized me from my profile on the "Hi" thread and kindly brought up my interest in breadmaking.? I didn't know how to email them, so I just continued OT.? I'll try to be more careful...

-Mary

[ghanna]

Dear Mary
Could you please see my thread on Chicken tikka masala  ,it is from a top chef in the U.S.A .
Thank you
ghanna

[merrybaker]

ghanna, yes, I've seen it, but I haven't had time to compare the two recipes.? My husband is going on a business trip next week, and I think I'll go on an all-Indian diet while he's gone.? With all the cream and oil in these recipes, I'm afraid it will be a weight-GAIN diet.
-Mary