Posted by Razor and moved to here by CA
Into a muslin net (to make like a teabag thingy)
3 cloves
6 x 1 inch pieces of cassia bark
3 - 4 pieces of mace
3 - 4 green cardamom pods
2 star anise
3 bay leaves, dried
then tie a knot - making it similar to a large teabag. Drop this into the pan, along with:
1 kg onion, roughly chopped
1 tbsp salt
1050 ml cold water
1/2 green and 1/2 red pepper, chopped
125g fresh carrot, roughly chopped
Stir well.
Put onto a high heat, and bring to the boil. Cover and boil for 45 minutes stirring frequently.
While that's simmering, make another mixture to add to it. Take:
30g peeled fresh garlic (about 3 - 4 cloves)
30g peeled fresh ginger
Using a blender, make into a paste with a small amount of water. Set aside.
Then, in a seperate bowl, mix:
2 1/4 tsp chilli powder
1 3/4 tsp coriander powder
3/4 tsp cumin powder
2 tsp tumeric powder
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1 3/4 tsp dried fenugreek leaf (Methi) finely chopped
3/4 tsp garam masala powder
Open a 200g can of chopped tomato and set aside.
Roughly chop 12g fresh coriander leaves, and also put to one side. These will be used at the end of the recipe.
Into a seperat, good-sized saucepan (I use a wok) add 5 tbsp (75ml) of vegetable oil. Heat the oil then add the garlic and ginger paste mixture. Stir until it becomes golden brown.
Take off the heat, and add the mixture of spices. It's important to remove it from the heat, as the spices burn easily, and should be treated with care.
Stir well, and return to a very low heat. You'll notice the wonderful instant aroma of spices.
Add the can of chopped tomato, and bring to the boil, stirring constantly.
Add 600ml (1 pint) of hot water into the mixture, and bring back to the boil, stirring constantly. Despit the fact that there's now liquid in this mixture, the spices can still burn on the base of the pan.
Once it has boiled for about 3 - 4 minutes, take it off the heat.
Go back to the large pan of onion mixture. Once it's boiled for the necessary 45 minutes, remove the net containing the whole spices and throw it away.
Pour the spicy tomato mixure into the onion pan, stir well, and boil for around 5 minutes.
Leave to cool before adding the coriander leaves, and then reduce to a smooth gravy using a blender. The base sauce is now complete!
This sauce should be enough for about 10 portions but I like to add more water, just to thin it out a touch as it is quite thick.
Topic: Kushi "Authentic Balti Curry" Cookbook Base (Read 46558 times)
