Topic: CA's Curry Base (aka "gravy"/"sauce")

[curryhell]

I think CA would simply say double everything.  Your base will be just as good, and more of it 

[goncalo]

I think CA would simply say double everything.  Your base will be just as good, and more of it 

Thanks CH! it was because of our recent exchange of messages that I decided to give this one a try (it's been on my list, but I've been sticking to what works for laziness...)

[_Jon_]

There is 337 comments over 34 pages about CA's base so other members have commented, you just have to read the threads.

Yes, but nothing from the more experienced members on the use of plum tomatoes (the question that's been hanging unanswered for some time now). Having just skimmed this thread I see that there are plenty of posts on doubling this recipe, including one by CA himself.

Thanks _Jon_! I am going to go with single portion. It's my first time cooking CA's, but looking forward to it. I'm just a bit tired of keeping all these different mix powders overtime :-)

Having now checked I see that in post 104 (currently page 11) CA says you can double the recipe, he doubles the time too.

For a while now I've been sticking with this base so that I can better judge what effect my cooking technique has on the finished dish, therefore keeping many mix powders isn't a problem (just the two CA powders plus a generic mix)
In my experience the recipes posted by CA are extremely good and very well described, which in my view makes them more suitable for honing technique than many other recipes I've seen.

[shezza999]

hello all..i have made ca's base and recepice with great results but i have a query..fairly new to the game so forgive me if i'm being dumb but when i make a madras sauce out of this base i always end up with less sauce than i started with..something must be evaporating..or is it..is this normal or would i be doing something wrong..thx

[Stephen Lindsay]

shezza999 yes that's spot on - and you will get this result with any curry, Madras or not. Some folk advocate the two stage reduction process:

stage 1 - half portion of base (say 150-200 ml), reduced rapidly with spices, tomato puree, garlic ginger paste etc.
stage 2 - half portion of base, reduced till sauce is the desired consistency

Thus you can expect a starting quantity of say 400 ml (i.e. Taz base) to be reduced to say 250 ml for a single curry. This is no different to classic sauce reduction in say, French cookery, where the thickness of the sauce is achieved by evaporating off some of the water content (reduction) as opposed to trying to thicken a sauce by adding cornflour.

Hope this helps.

[walleye]

Made my second batch the other day I just cut the garlic down a little the trouble is every time I walk pass the pot I have a couple of spoonfuls so wont be much left for tomorrows Sunday lunch

[shezza999]

shezza999 yes that's spot on - and you will get this result with any curry, Madras or not. Some folk advocate the two stage reduction process:

stage 1 - half portion of base (say 150-200 ml), reduced rapidly with spices, tomato puree, garlic ginger paste etc.
stage 2 - half portion of base, reduced till sauce is the desired consistency

Thus you can expect a starting quantity of say 400 ml (i.e. Taz base) to be reduced to say 250 ml for a single curry. This is no different to classic sauce reduction in say, French cookery, where the thickness of the sauce is achieved by evaporating off some of the water content (reduction) as opposed to trying to thicken a sauce by adding cornflour.

Hope this helps.

thanks stephen...was sure i was doing something wrong.ca's recipe for madras thas serves 1-2 only uses 300ml and i use more like 500ml and end up with a serving that just meets my needs!! ca must not have an appetite like mine..lol

[stee41]

Hi,
Thanks for the recipe and all the effort well done , the first time I made this it turned exactly how yours looked but personally I found it a bit on the watery side so I made a second batch and reduced the water to 1200ml, for me I found it better but thats my own opinion, I still used your base its very good...just thought I would give you feedback like you asked, cheers !!

[StoneCut]

stee41, to my understanding the base gravy is quite thin on purpose. The reason is that it will still reduce in the pan once you cook with it. If you reduce the base gravy too much beforehand then you might not develop as much flavour in your final dish as if you hadn't.

[hazzy]

so its been 3 years since this has been updated, are there any improvements since? thanks