Topic: What Ingredients are we missing

[Secret Santa]

Much, much worse....!!!
I use my nose and tongue! 

Hi PaulP , your teaspoon is 50% bigger than my teaspoon  ;D I have Digital Scales too

To weigh stuff with? No way am I eating at your place Mikka!  ;D

[JerryM]

just to add a bit more by way of example.

today i made the lasan marinade and used mustard oil for the 1st time.

i am well sold on the stuff and feel it's a key BIR ingredient used probably more than we appreciate.

it's therefore the type of thing that i've clearly been missing and needs to go on the list above.

[JerryM]

have added the raw malik data in case it's of any use. i've not completed the exercise but it will give u a good idea of what i'm trying to do.

Nb the file is a spreadsheet ie "xls" and i had to change the file extension to jpg to get it to load. just use save link to download it and change extension back to xls.

http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/de96545b27ea62ffe94311dafc47b0c6.jpg

[Cory Ander]

i am well sold on the stuff and feel it's a key BIR ingredient used probably more than we appreciate.

I totally disagree Jerry!  This is a perfect example of where and how we are all too often being led up the garden path!   

Mustard oil may play a significant part in traditional Indian cooking, but not in BIR cooking.  As far as I'm aware, mustard oil is not even allowed to be sold for human consumption in the UK (hence the labelling).

[JerryM]

CA,

i can see the label too and find it very difficult to come to terms with it.

i do feel it must only be used in small amounts as it's very powerfull stuff and u only want a subtle taste.

i got some on my hands and the flavour remained pretty much all afternoon - that flavour for me speaks BIR in volumes. it's the complete opposite to methi - which does nothing really for me yet it quite clearly is another key ingredient for most BIR chefs (not all though).

i obviously need to taste the tandoori chicken - which appears more like tikka recipe marinade.

the other trouble for me in not knowing traditional cooking is how to use it - other than in marinade. would u add a little to base for example.

[Derek Dansak]

Hi Mikka,  i normally use 1 tsp or less of rock salt per curry. has to be rock salt ! although i doubt this is as much as real bir use. i have seen them use a lot more, and almost a half chef spoon of spice mix ! they dont faff around with just a tsp of spice mix like many of us do

[peterandjen]

Jerry is right it is mustard oil, the stuff was labelled "for external use only" in the early 90's, thatrs why bir's taste different today.
I think indian cooks still use it only on the sly because they dont want to be closed down for using an ingredient labelled unfit......
Spices of india sell it.
Most indian supermarkets/foodstores stock and sell it, most people in Bangladesh still cook with it.
A recipe told to me by my mate John who cooks and has cooked the best bir balti i have ever tasted....
Take a couple of onions and frey the f**k out of them, until they turn into a brown sludge, then add your spices and mustard oil and fry that together for 5 mins, add this mixture to your stock.
He also says that all this s**t about not browning your onions is b*****s, his words.
I can already imagine the kind of replies this will recieve lol.
And no Im not asking John to post here, he's computer illiterate and wouldn't waste his time, you'll just have to take it as said as i do and put up with it.

[Derek Dansak]

whats the issue with mustard oil, its sold every where in brighton , i broght some. still not used it yet though.

[peterandjen]

Mustard oil is the ingredient that gives that missing taste everbodies looking for.

Ive known about it for years but always thought it was a wind up, mainly due to the fact that is is labelled against internal use, but recently every top chef has started using it again, gordon ramsey, jamie oliver madder jaffrey......

Be carefull if you try and brown your onions, its not a simple task as ive just found out.
Too high a heat and they burn. which tastes bitter.
What your looking for is that hot dog/burger van onion thats soft, brown and sweet.
Once you get to that stage its just a case of mashing em up with your spoon.

Its a quite lengthy process and you have to stand by and watch all the time.

The mustard oil is going to have to be experimented with as far as volumes are concerned, John told me only to use a tsp of it as its strong.
Yet i have a recipe that calls for 4tbsps in a rogan josh that serves 4.
So on we go.
Oh and it enhances the flavour of your spices also.

[Derek Dansak]

what i meant was , why is it considered unfit? i will google it ? who is this google chap anyway ?  ;D