Topic: Carrots?

[Secret Santa]

try tasting boiled Onions then taste fried Onions - no contest 

True, but no BIR is going to fry their base onions, there's just too many. They boil them.

[emin-j]

try tasting boiled Onions then taste fried Onions - no contest 

True, but no BIR is going to fry their base onions, there's just too many. They boil them.

True Secret Santa , I suppose it's more caramelize than fry , maybe that by caramelizing the Onions first we can get that much closer to the BIR taste which they achieve by boiling in water ( with oil added ) for God knows how long and the base is ' on the heat ' all the hours the T/A is open which would probably be impractical for the home Curry cook.
The Admin's New Base Sauce ( with fried / caramelized Onions ) was taken from a Recipe used at a Indian Restaurant in Bradford.

[Mikka1]

I think the frying of onions first has some merit. I know I've seen fried onions lying around here and there and some precook chicken with onions.

What I am trying to do is NOT replicate an Indian Kitchen. It's impossible at home in any case for me. I'm just concentrating on taste and I really don't care how I get there in all honesty. ;D

[JerryM]

Mikka,

the ifindforu base introduced me to ajwain. it's quite a nice little touch - not for everyone. i then came across fennel and now use that in place of ajwain.

on the caramelised onions i find the fact that there is oil in the base then boiling does the same trick. i also reduce the water initially to increase the proportion of oil (limit water to 20% of initial onion volume ie 300ml in 800g base). i then add extra water to make the base right after blending. i know not strictly BIR practice and it "caramelized" don't make a huge difference but i've stuck to it.

to convince yourself u would need to do a side by side.

http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=3366.0

[Mikka1]

Thanks for the link again Jerry.
I don't know about fennel for me really. I like a hint of it but nothing much more than that. I think both are very strong aren't they? When I added Ajwain to a marinade it really did the trick.

Do you think in all honesty its just about timing the spice in cooking? No matter what the heat, no matter what the spice so long as you know its properties? Cumin can be quite sweet for instance...

Mikka,

the ifindforu base introduced me to ajwain. it's quite a nice little touch - not for everyone. i then came across fennel and now use that in place of ajwain.

on the caramelised onions i find the fact that there is oil in the base then boiling does the same trick. i also reduce the water initially to increase the proportion of oil (limit water to 20% of initial onion volume ie 300ml in 800g base). i then add extra water to make the base right after blending. i know not strictly BIR practice and it "caramelized" don't make a huge difference but i've stuck to it.

to convince yourself u would need to do a side by side.

http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=3366.0

[joshallen2k]

the ifindforu base introduced me to ajwain. it's quite a nice little touch - not for everyone. i then came across fennel and now use that in place of ajwain.

One place I find that ajwain really works well is in tikka marinade for king prawn. It was a one of the few hold-outs from my pre-CR0 cooking days.

Try a sprinkle in your next KP tikka. I find it adds something very positive.

-- Josh

[JerryM]

Josh,

i like the idea of a little ajwain in tikka. have u tried it for chicken.

Mikka,

i do think timing of the spice cooking is important (and very hard to judge). i used to follow the "toffee" approach to frying the spices (effectively dry frying - took ages to even get proficient). i then did some frying trials (can add link) and switched to adding water & some base. i also did some very very slow cooking trials and was amazed how good the taste was. i just recently switched back towards the toffee approach (1/2 way house) of adding the tom puree straight from the tin but still adding a little base. the verdict for me is still out. in short i think timing is directly related to heat and why it is so difficult to do in practise.

i also think if u over cook the dish becomes darker. u don't always want this so i tend to undercook as std.

it's a real subject  for me - at proably the crux of it all.

[chinois]

Since trying mango chutney in my pathias and dansaks i am convinced a lot of places use it, and not necessarily just in those two curries. Of the two best takeaways near me i know they both use it because i can taste it. The dishes with chutney in taste better and are the ones my friends agree 'are the real deal'. It's not necessarily a secret as i have seen it listed as an ingredient on menu items.
I use TRS sweet mango chutney which contains mango, sugar, salt and acetic acid as it is the type used by BIRs. ?4 for 3kg.

[Mikka1]

That's interesting. Since the flavour I am looking for is quite distinct, it does not alter only in levels of intensity I would think that it has to be something jar bought perhaps if all else doesn't nail it.

Since trying mango chutney in my pathias and dansaks i am convinced a lot of places use it, and not necessarily just in those two curries. Of the two best takeaways near me i know they both use it because i can taste it. The dishes with chutney in taste better and are the ones my friends agree 'are the real deal'. It's not necessarily a secret as i have seen it listed as an ingredient on menu items.
I use TRS sweet mango chutney which contains mango, sugar, salt and acetic acid as it is the type used by BIRs. ?4 for 3kg.