Topic: Is there a difference between "Balti" and "BIR"?

[parker21]

hi razor hope i'm not too late! save your money and instead printout bruce edwards curryhouse cookery you will learn much more than KD's book, most of the longest serving members have a copy of kris's book and past through that stage on their way here. you would be taking a step backwards imo  ;D
regards
gary

[Razor]

Hi Gary,

Thanks for that.  No, you are not too late.  I was going to buy the curry secret and the New curry secret this coming Wednesday.  Maybe I will hold on to my cash and use it to stock up on ingredients ;D

Gary, can you put up a link to the Bruce Edwards thingy or direct me to it please?

Many thanks,

Ray

[Cory Ander]

The KD books are only a few quid each and are excellent value nevertheless.  Well worth the money and interesting reading/tips.

You should find the Bruce Edward's stuff in the download section here: http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?board=5.0

[JerryM]

Razor,

i know what gary is getting at with the KD1 book. I keep mine by my PC for constant reference although i've not made anything from it since joining the site. Since Secret Santa's tip of replacing "garam masala" wherever u see it in the book with curry powder and i'd add and/or spice mix has made it much much better in terms of the main dish recipes. the rest of the book naan, starters etc is well worth the money.

i have the KD2 book which is a real good read. it's not BIR though and i would tag it as traditional. i've not got round to making anything yet so can't really comment on it's true worth.

If there are any specifics u need me to compare in the LB Balti book then just ask.

[Razor]

Thanks guys.  Seeing as though the KD books are only cheap, I will probably buy them anyway.  I may be able to use elements of each book along with the Bruce Edwards PDF and come up with my ultimate dish  ;D

I will keep you all posted and thanks for all your help and advise.  It does seem to be quite a debating point but Im glad I raised the issue, even though I wasn't the first 

Ray

[chef2323]

The "Balti" is the small serving dish that the curry is served in at the table.
In a BIR if u ask for a curry you will get it in a shallow stainless steel dish.
If you have a Balti it will come in a cast iron dish with handles, The curry should be cooked in the dish that it is served in hence that why it mad of cast iron.

The above is my understanding

Chef

[Cory Ander]

"Balti...also known as Karahi, it is a Kashmiri curry, freshly cooked and has a rich aroma of spices. It is not really very hot or flavored with chillies, it's just seriously delicious. Traditionally this dryish, slightly oily and spiced up dish is eaten with a bread in the right hand, and the food is scooped up.....their spicing is a little subtle; fresh garlic, ginger, coriander leaf and aromatic spices including clove, cassia bark, cardamoms, aniseed, fennel, cummin and garam masala. Liquor doesnot get served here as the restaurateurs are mostly Pakistani Moslems"  (http://monadarling.com/lifestyle/whats-cooking-in-the-balti.html)

"The food served in the Balti pan are freshly cooked aromatically spiced curries. Balti food at its best is very aromatic, but not excessively spiked with chillies. Traditionally it is eaten without rice or cutlery. Balti bread is used to scoop up the food.... Balti food is both simple in its concept and cooking, and complex in its flavours. True Balti food is dryish and slightly oily and spicily tasty" (http://recipes.chef2chef.net/recipe-archive/25/140741.shtml)

"So what does Afzall say a Balti is?...It's a joke. Hundred per cent joke, he says. It was an invention for the goras (white folk). A Balti is like curry. It exists and doesn?t exist. Do you know what a curry is? I have never had a curry in my life!  We tried to civilise the natives by introducing different kinds of cuisine. In particular, we introduced the tandoor and karahi dishes. We soon discovered that the goras had problems pronouncing the word karahi, so as a joke we said why not call it a Balti. It will make life easier for the goras.? (http://www.birminghampost.net/life-leisure-birmingham-guide/postfeatures/2008/11/03/birmingham-asked-what-makes-a-balti-65233-22173155/)

"A Balti curry is cooked quickly over a high heat and is served, sizzling hot, in the Balti dish. Knives and forks are not usually used to eat the curry. Instead, naan bread or chapattis are used to scoop up the curry" (http://www.curryfocus.co.uk/Blog/2007/12/15/balti-curry-what-is-it/)