Topic: Which benchmark should we use to measure our curry cooking success?

[Cory Ander]

Do we make it a personal choice thing, where we all do our own thing and go from there?

I think it can only realistically be a personal choice thing.

[Stephen Lindsay]

To my mind, making a curry is like making a house.  It's built in layers, starting with firm foundations (compare to the curry base).  Without firm foundations, the house will be crap. 

A basic curry is like a basic house, it has minimal architecture (compare with additional spicing) and is dependent on basic building skills (compare with cooking technique).  Without basic building skills the house will be crap. 

If you can build a house, you might be able to build a block of flats which has additional architecture and materials (compare to a madras).  If you can't build a house (because your foundations and building skills are crap) your block of flats will be crap.

So you need to ensure that your foundations and basic building skills are in place before you go building flats, skyscrapers, etc.

Haha, still with me!   

Now my head hurts!  Where's a wall...I want to bang my head on it!......   ;D

CA for poet laureate?

[Derek Dansak]

my own benchmark is very simple. produce a madras which tastes 99 percent the same as 1 of the 10 good bir i buy curries from. It does not have to be as good as the very best as thats unrealistic. simples !  ;D  you cant specify a benchmark on a web site unless we all taste each others efforts. it would be like having a dancing competition, where the judges are all blind  ;D  it would be doomed to failure ! just like a cr0 benchmark.

[JerryM]

CA,

on my TA menu i have listed "plain curry (medium)". it does not give much away, "produced from a wide but basic range of spices for a medium taste". u can have it vegetable or meat.

what recipe do u suggest as the starting point.

[George]

what recipe do u suggest as the starting point.

At least 3 orders of the same basic dish from your 3 favourite takeaways. R&D can be quite expensive. Around here, that will be about 3 x ?4.50 for a start, in order to get something of a feel for what it should taste like and whether there's much difference from BIR to BIR.

I haven't tasted that dish for many years, so I need to do the above before I even think of making my own. Otherwise, what's the point? I won't know what I'm aiming for!

[emin-j]

I think it a much better way to ' Master ' one dish at a time rather than " Jack of all Curries master of none " 

but you're missing the point eminj....

oh, never mind.....   :  (where is the "scream" icon!)[/b]
To my mind, making a curry is like making a house.  It's built in layers, starting with firm foundations (compare to the curry base).  Without firm foundations, the house will be crap. 

A basic curry is like a basic house, it has minimal architecture (compare with additional spicing) and is dependent on basic building skills (compare with cooking technique).  Without basic building skills the house will be crap. 

If you can build a house, you might be able to build a block of flats which has additional architecture and materials (compare to a madras).  If you can't build a house (because your foundations and building skills are crap) your block of flats will be crap.

So you need to ensure that your foundations and basic building skills are in place before you go building flats, skyscrapers, etc.

Haha, still with me!   

Now my head hurts!  Where's a wall...I want to bang my head on it!......   ;D

And the point is CA ! Without going all around the Houses  Dont try and run before you can walk .

[Mikka1]

I'm pretty certain this will not help me at all.
Basic in a term can mean anything as regards cooking. Elevating it? Something else too.

I agree that grounding the subject matter will really help but only if you truly know what is going on? The fact remains as I see it anyway is people trying different things and getting back on them. When they don't it could be that they are where they want to be, if they do it could be to help but everything as some have said is subject to the persons taste, smell, (more smell).  :

I don't want to cook boring sauces, I'm pretty happy the way things are going to be honest.

[Cory Ander]

And the point is CA ! Without going all around the Houses  Dont try and run before you can walk .

Eminj, I have tried to put my point across, in several different ways, but I appear to have failed. 

There are only so many different ways I can (or am willing to) say the same thing.  You (and some others), it seems, are just not getting it.  I'm not about to try again 

[JerryM]

CA,

one thing i'd like to explore is the base. what are u're thoughts as if we all use different base and technique in cooking the base then we won't be on the same hymn sheet in terms of learning.

on my mind would be say u're aka or CRO2 development or even chriswg's curry in a hurry.

on the dish itself are we suggesting something like: oil, g/g paste, tom puree, spice (mix powder, chilli, salt), base.

where do the likes of green chilli, bunjarra, lemon dressing, fresh coriander sit intially.

what are u're thoughts so we can perhaps get out heads together.

[Derek Dansak]

CA, Jerry i think i see what you are attempting. personally i am happy with where i am at. but good luck, it sounds like it would be useful for some of our newer members.