Topic: Hello there

[keemanan]

Hi Guys, lurked for a few days and was suitably impressed with the positive nature of the place.
Began cooking curries about 15 years ago , the same time as I bought my Crueset pot which I still own.
I must admit I only perfected and was able to replicate a few times a signature curry gravy which everyone says is nice, as you all know it takes time and understanding.
Was fascinated with the videos and demos here, great stuff.

A couple of questions , does everyone use a curry base?
What on earth are people using 'curry powder' in their recipes?
I always thought that was what was left over on the factory floors!
Am I wrong.
To be honest I haven;t checked out any authentic type recipes yet as I have been fascinated by the BIR stuff.
Anyway I hope to stay around and chat but for now I'm off to browse the authentic stuff on here!
 ;D

[michaelpratt]

Hi Keemanan

As a fairly recent convert to this site myself I hope you are made as welcome as I have been. (I made chef today! a fact my wife found totally pathetic, but I was chuffed)

Regarding your questions:

I like homestyle curries rather than the Holy Grail BIR so don't do the base thing.

And as to why curry powder is added with all the other spices remains a mystery to me, despite several attempts to find out here the best answer is roughly "'cos it's what they do".

Enjoy the site, and figure the politics, the confusion and the complications of it at your pleasurable leisure.

Mike

[JerryM]

keemanan,

a big welcome - picked out u're in the North West from another post.

the base is really down to what type of curry u like. some on the site are for the traditional. if u want restaurant then u need base.

the branded curry powder is very good stuff. it is something that u can experiment with ie u can get a very decent curry without it. for me i feel it adds a tad more depth and convinced BIR's use it. u can even make the curry powder yourself of course too (CA did a recipe some time ago which was very good).

[keemanan]

Thanks for the welcome guys, I'm gonna try adding some curry powder to my next curry but it does't sit well! 

[PaulP]

Hi Keemanan and welcome to the forum.

I'm not sure adding curry powder will improve your traditional recipes.

The way I see it is this: To get the BIR flavour we are used to in this country the chefs use a spice mix that contains predominantly in descending quantity order:

Turmeric
Corriander
Cumin
Curry powder
Paprika

The curry powder only amounts to about 17% of a typical BIR spice mix.
I believe it is added by the chefs to add a little depth of flavour as commercial curry powder often contains many more spices such as curry leaves, fennel, cardamom etc.

I also think the ratio of the main players (Turmeric/Corriander/Cumin/Paprika) in most commercial curry powders does not match what the BIR chefs use in the UK so you would probably never get a good BIR flavour match if you just used curry powder on it's own.

Regarding base sauce I think most of us on here use it but not everybody.

I'm interested in traditional Indian cooking too so if you have any good recipes please post them.

Cheers,

Paul.

[Razor]

Hi Keemanan,

I totally agree will Paul regarding curry powder.  There are many spices contained in curry powder, that you simply couldn't add to your standard mix because it would be very difficult not to add too much.

Below was my reply to michaelpratt when he asked the same question in another thread:

A lot of curry powders, for example, 'mild madras' do use all the standard spices but, a lot of them include, clove, curry leaves, fennel seeds, cassia bark, mustard seed, and white pepper.  All of these spices are very pungent and to add them to a spice blend alone, even in such small quantities as 0.25 tsp, would in my opinion over power the spice mix.  The quantities in a standard curry powder are perfectly balanced hence the addition.

You can leave it out if you wish but, for me, if I'm trying to create "BIR" then I want to use everything that the restaurant would, and there are many reports that suggest, they (the restaurants) do use curry powder, mild madras being the standard.

The same thing goes for the base also.  It is a must in BIR world, but not in authentic or traditional Indian food.

Personally, I'm firmly in the BIR camp, and really not to keen on traditional Indian food.

Each to their own I guess but I'm sure that you will find something to suit your appetite on the forum.

Good luck, and a warm welcome to you

Ray

[Malc.]

Welcome to CR0.

I cook a mix of what I have learnt so far being traditional, BIR and my own recipes. Whilst the emphasis of the site is BIR, for me the fascination is simply cooking a nice plate of food with an understanding of how I got there.

You will also find a mix of opinion on what is right or wrong when it comes to BIR and there is definitely a notable range of differing tastes and expectations of what a 'curry' should be. The one thing we all have in common, is a desire to be able to cook our favourite recipes at home. 

 

[keemanan]

Welcome to CR0.

I cook a mix of what I have learnt so far being traditional, BIR and my own recipes. Whilst the emphasis of the site is BIR, for me the fascination is simply cooking a nice plate of food with an understanding of how I got there.

You will also find a mix of opinion on what is right or wrong when it comes to BIR and there is definitely a notable range of differing tastes and expectations of what a 'curry' should be. The one thing we all have in common, is a desire to be able to cook our favourite recipes at home. 

 

well said Axe and thanks again for the kind welcome.

I will probably attempt a curry tomorrow incorperating what I have read here I will use some curry powder and also fry the dry spices under high heat.

As axe says I dont mind cooking with a base or authentic , I just love to cook 

[JerryM]

I will probably attempt a curry tomorrow incorporating what I have read here I will use some curry powder and also fry the dry spices under high heat.

keemanaan,

by all means try things out - i do the same - it's the only way to learn. on frying dry spices under high heat - i spent a long time perfecting this only to realise that adding free water works just as good and delivers consistency (most add water to the tom puree). i can add a link if u're interested. it does work in some circumstances - the only one i've found is Dipuraja's biryani.