Topic: Rick Stein's Bradford Curry

[michaelpratt]

Was on Good Food Channel this morning. I eat at the Karachi occasionally and it isn't BIR, but my preferred BPR. (http://www.restaurant-guide.com/uk+reviews-more.htm?restaurant=karachi-restaurant)

"So many of us try to replicate the taste of a restaurant curry and find there is something missing. Well next time try it this way" he said.

http://www.stonefisk.com/index.php/2009/05/23/recipe-rick-steinarsquo-s-lamb-and-spina

I am sure this is the recipe as he just made on the show. It is very simple, no stock base sauce and few ingredients. I have eaten it and it is wonderful.

Incidentally if you go, park in Wilton Street (70p for an hour) and cross the road to Neal Street. You will also see the Kashmir if you go that way. Only eat downstairs there. More BPR.( http://www.restaurant-guide.com/kashmir-1.htm)

And also ask for the Lamb and Spinach Karahi at the Karachi. It is the same dish as the "Rick Stein Special" on the peg menu board but a quid cheaper!

I would like if we had a NW India / Punjabi / Pakistani room on here. The focus on replicating restaurant dishes from one town in Bangladesh is very narrow. A bit like promising European cuisine and forever trying to make the perfect Swedish meatballs.

Have a nice sunny day,

Mike

[George]

The focus on replicating restaurant dishes from one town in Bangladesh is very narrow

That's not the case at all. BIR food is found throughout the UK. I know of one or two Pakistani based restaurants and they are good but different, and in a small minority. Open a forum section for Pakistani type curry by all means but don't knock the main focus on BIR. Why did you join this forum is you have so little respect for 'narrow' BIR cuisine?

If you went to the 'one town' in Bangladesh you can bet their curries would taste very different again.

[Razor]

Hiya Mike,

I know what your saying but, I also think that your missing the point of the main part of this forum mate.

In the Traditional recipe section, you will find many recipes from all over the sub-continent including, Kerela, Goan, Punjabi and Pakistani.  I don't really think that you can attribute the BIR taste to 'one' town in Bangladesh either! 

The horrible truth about the BIR concept is this; it's a made up cuisine, invented by early immigrants from the sub-continent, mainly Bangladesh, in an attempt to earn a living in a foreign land, exploiting the British interest in spice.  It is a million miles away from what they eat themselves but it is loosely based on traditional recipes.  The concept is to create a way of putting food on the table, minutes after the order has been placed, and that is why most thing are pre-cooked including the base. 

What came out of this innovation, was a 'taste' that was typical of these restaurants and it is that taste, that most of the members here, are trying to copy.

Now, as the BIR has become bigger over the decades, so has the attraction to cash in on this concept by other immigrants from the sub-continent, aswell as Pakistan, Kashmir and Sri-lanka.  The BIR IS moving in a new direction.  It seems that the need to pre-cook everything is not as prevalent as it was back in the 80's and 90's.  People these day's go to the restaurant for the whole night, whereas back in the 80's & 90's, you went before or after the pub.  People will wait longer for their plate these days.

And the taste that most of us are desperately trying to replicate, is slowly disappearing.  The food that is replacing it, is without doubt, top quality nosh but, It's missing that taste that is for most of us, the 'holy grail'

I also think that this, is the reason why we struggle on here to get top quality, first hand reports from a legitmate BIR source.  The old style has mostly gone, and the reports that we receive here, are mainly from TA's or new style BIR's.

As for traditional dishes, most of the ones that I have tried or made are on the whole, have been a  bit disappointing really and certainly not what I'm looking for.

Anyway, that's my two penneth on the subject

Ray

[michaelpratt]

Hi Ray

Don't think I am missing the point.

A curry in  - Swindon to be random -, is not the same as a restaurant curry in Bradford. The Kasmir and Karachi and a number of other worthy Bradford establishments were amongst some of the first in the country - founded to give immigrant mill workers something to eat when coming off the nightshift.

In terms of authenticity, they stand along side any other cuisine to be judged. They are however restaurant curries, impossible to emulate (!) and damn tasty.

In any case, I was writing a general (bored cos I was baby sitting and hate Cbeebies) email - I only wish that traditionally different restaurant styles could be acknowledged here. Hence I think it would be good if non-Bangladeshi sub-continental restaurant food had its own page.

Now .... back to turning a bowl of mince in to a keema peas. Which I know will not taste as good as my local takeout!

And in terms of Britishness I agree entirely. I have travelled extensively throughout India and   long since gave up on finding a decent restaurant meal.

Mike

[Malc.]

Mike, I know where your coming from. For me the whole 'curry' (I really hate calling it that now) quest, is about producing good food for myself and the family to enjoy.

It is about producing dishes that I enjoy whether they be from the menu of my favourite BIR or more traditional from the other side of the world.

I appreciate that this forum is geared towards BIR and to that extent I support it all the way. I do think it could expand on other cooking styles (keeping within the remit of Indian food). I also think it would do well to cut down on the saturation of sections that dedicated to BIR. Not to diminish its main topic, but to make it a alot easier for people to follow.

[Razor]

Mike/Axe,

I too totally understand where your both coming from, but, this forum is dedicated to BIR food in the main, with small parts dedicated to traditional and even Chinese.

If you read the welcome message on the home page:

If you want to cook curry just like the Indian takeaway, join up now, its free and always will be...
This forum is all about creating your favourite curries just like you would get from an Indian takeaway.

It's clear from the start what the forum is all about.

I'm not against including an "Authentic food" section, even though I believe that this is covered by the "Traditional Recipes" section, but I wouldn't like to see BIR sections removed to accommodate it.

Axe,

For me the whole 'curry' (I really hate calling it that now) quest

I have heard you say this a couple of times now, and with curiosity getting the better of me, I just have to ask why ;D

I mean, a curry is a curry by any other name  

My pet hate, is when someone tells me that they love Indian food, when what they really mean is, they love British Indian Restaurant Food, which is to Indian cuisine as what  'Pizza Hut' is to Italian cuisine. IMO

I for one, don't love Indian cuisine, having tried and made many Traditional recipes with disappointing results, but I do love British Indian Restaurant cuisine.

I totally respect both your opinions on this subject, and every member has the right offer suggestions on improving the forum, so it's all good.

Ray

[Secret Santa]

I for one, don't love Indian cuisine, having tried and made many Traditional recipes with disappointing results

I have to agree with you there Ray but, I do wonder whether it's just that we haven't tried the right recipes or, dare I suggest, that our techniques aren't up to scratch!   

The reason I say that is that many people, including members of this forum, have tried the real thing in India and swear by it.

[Razor]

Hi SS,

I do wonder whether it's just that we haven't tried the right recipes or, dare I suggest, that our techniques aren't up to scratch!   

That may well be the case SS. 

Even when I've had them prepared for me by my neighbour, who by all accounts, is the mother of all Indian cooks within her community, I've been somewhat underwhelmed.  I'm a bit disgusted with myself for saying that because the family has shown me nothing but the utmost in their hospitality.

As for going to India and trying out the food, wow, that would be a dream come true for me.  I know that sounds like a contradiction but I suspect the dishes over there will be a completely different dish than we could reproduce over here.  The produce alone, will be of a far superior quality (read organic) than we get over here.  Plus, the romance of the occasion will add something to the dish that somehow, I don't think could be replicated in grotty old Manchester, lol

Ray

[Malc.]

Don't get me wrong, I do support this forum and it's principal topic. In the main, my experience of 'curry' is that of of my favourite BIR. but over recent years, I have taught myself to appreciate alot of foods that previously, I would have discounted.

My quest is not specific to learning BIR, but learning and understanding a wide variety of foods, beit local or world wide. Given the variety of food available worldwide, it's going to be an endless quest. Getting more specific with Indian Cuisine is something that I have wanted to do for some time.

I've started referring to Indian Cuisine as is rather than curry because 'curry' isn't correct. Curry means means gravy effectively and alot of the dishes I do are not in a gravy. I just think it's wrong to refer to it overall as curry when its not. Of course, I don't expect my opinion to change that of the millions of people in the UK that refer to it as curry.

Traditional or BIR, we all love certain parts of the cuisine and I think this site would benefit to diversify overall. Like I said, I wouldn't want the site to detract from its main subject but the two do go hand in hand.

SS, I think there is probably alot of truth in your comment. Having seen just a small portion of varying recipes on regional websites, finding a recipe that we are likely to take onboard straight away, is a tall order. As with alot of cuisines, it has to grow. I guess it's down to the individual and his/her palette.

[Razor]

Hi Axe,

Right, I get it now.  No, for sure, if the dish contains no gravy (sauce), then no, it's not curry.  Yet a dish could be described as 'curried' and contain no gravy, for instance, KD's Karahi Keema!

Ray