Topic: BIR Spice mix - where is it from?

[chinois]

This is all starting to tie in with a conversation I had the other week. Not sure if people will except what I was told, as it's going to go against some pre conceptions.

dont leave us hanging!  ;D

[commis]

Hi

Need to get all the cross references correct, eg authors notes such as Camellia Panjabi "North Indian Food is popular all over India". What I will say is that chinois, it's been staring you in the face. That current country names have been clouding things, I was told to look in Indian cookery books for Pakistani recipes by the girl in my Asian grocers and most of all Axe, let the IG cook you a "proper curry" not a BIR. I asked once, from a Bangladeshi run one and was told it would take 24 hrs to get the fish! Paul P saying "not found in Bangladeshi" All the bits start to fit. I'd gone to the pub with a mate, gentleman sat on the next table asked in very poor English, if we ate in any of the local BIR's. I asked him what he cooked at home? Chili food was the term he used, English food is "salty" food and Asian food is "chili".So I asked what sort of things, he seems to prefer chicken with ginger and garlic etc. foods. I asked weather any of the local BIR's cooked his "type" of cooking? he said yes all. The gent I was talking to was from Northen India (what is now Pakistan which once contained Bangladesh) and he's worked in more kitchens than any cook/chef I have ever met.  I did ask weather they were true  home style North Indian (Pakistan)recipes used? I knew the answer before asking,sadly not. As we all know things have changed, menus added to with new waves of people coming to the UK.  So I dusted of my books and put myself in the position of  someone who needs to adapt his home style cooking to sell, cook on a kitchen cooker in a country where I don't understand the language very well. I also looked on "one page cook books" they have some very interesting reading about the regions, Yes North India cooks with bases that are of the same style as BIR , not 100% but you can see the rough forms. So that doesn't get us a quick fix to all  BIR's  but if it's a Bradford Old Style your after it should help also with the Balti angle.

Regards