Topic: pete's base v.1

[Malc.]

Two bases? Very interesting. I've spied this in countless videos now. I'm not sure the IG do two but I will endeavour to find out. I will say their take-out is not as good as the eat-in.

I guess the logic is to ensure restaurant custom, I can't see any other advantage.

[JerryM]

peteleton,

this may be of interest http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=2332.0 - it's where i tried the celery. u're result is clearly v.good in terms of your base in that it shows it's all in balance which is crucial to the end result. believe me though if the celery is out of balance u know about it.

[JerryM]

Two bases? Very interesting.

it would be good to get more info on this - my own thoughts are that when  2 bases are used they are very different - a std base for most "spice" based dishes and a mild version for the "ingredient" based dishes ie korma.

i can't see it being down to TA or restaurant quality - this is down to the cooking for me.

[peteleton]

I agree with the celery i used the pre packet cut and washed stuff which is about 6 inches long each piece ( I should have stated that really) but the next person who comes along may stick in 5 huge sticks and it come out completely diff infact ill state in the recipe what i used .

[peteleton]

when i was there i asked what the two different pots were and he said one base for takeaway and one for restaurant. Unless he is trying to put me off or distract me from knowing some secret i cant see it not being the case as i would say the food u eat in has a better taste than the takeaway food. but i have allot of questions for him on my next visit and ill take a sample of base in to see if he thinks i have done it correctly and see if i can find out any more secrets. but to be honest i think its all down to they just know what they are doing were as I'm still learning, the same way any chef  would be able to cook dishes far better than i could at home.

[Razor]

Hi Pete, Jerry.

I must say that the "two bases" do raise a few questions.

Pete, I'm not sure that they are being completely honest with you.  Why would they have a "substandard" base for their takeaway menu?  I would hazard a guess at the bulk of their main trade would come through their TA section?

Surely it would be prudent for them to ensure that the food that they serve through their TA section, would be comparable to their restaurant menu?

Now, I do know that TA food, quite often, is not as good as the restaurant food but I put this down to the length of time it takes from the pan to the table.

I too have often seen two pots on the go, one usually being smaller than the other.  I have asked about this and been told that one base is for the milder dishes such as Korma, CTM and so on, while the other is generally used for you Madras, bhuna, Vindaloos.

Also, in the Authentic Balti curry cookbook, there is a 2nd base recipe purely for the use in Korma's.

I would be well pissed off if I thought that my TA dish was purposely created with the intention of it not being of the standard of the same restaurant dish!

Ray

P.S,

Pete, I'm not doubting you by the way mate, I'm questioning the answer that the chappy gave you

[Malc.]

Could it be that the restaurant dishes are cooked with much more procedure requiring a greater amount of ingredients to be added at cook off, there by requiring a less generalised base. Leaving the the takeaway dishes to be cooked with less procedure in a quicker time and requiring a more generalised base?

One thing that I found confusing when at the IG was when I asked about the Korma recipe. During the conversation I was told that sometimes they use single Cream and sometimes they use Condensed Milk. What is clear is that they stock alot of both which begs the question why? I had no choice but to conclude that it was the difference between eat-in and take-away.

For the same reasons Ray, I find it strange that they would do this. But it seems to sit with my experiences. I know foods like Naan and even Bhaji can be upset being confined to a take-away packet, but curry dishes in the main should be okay.

It will be very interesting to learn more.

[Razor]

Hi Axe,

For the same reasons Ray, I find it strange that they would do this. But it seems to sit with my experiences. I know foods like Naan and even Bhaji can be upset being confined to a take-away packet, but curry dishes in the main should be okay.

Certainly the starters do not travel well and as you say, curry should be fine, but it quite often isn't?  The only thing I can think of is, It may continue cooking in the foil container, just a little too much?

The thing is, how complicated would it be to have two separate recipes for the same dish?  Ok, the base would/could go along way in altering the flavour of the dish but even this would have to be completely different to have any noticeable taste difference.

  For example, one base would have to be the usual, onion, carrot, peppers spices, maybe tomatoes.  The 2nd base would have all them ingredients plus, a load of whole spices too (in theory) to have a noticeable difference!

Then when cooking the main dishes, the chef would have to be very competent to be able to create two different dishes of the same name, ensuring the TA version is intentionally not as good as the restaurant version.  Unless the TA food is cooked by a different chef/cook who may not be of the standard of the restaurant chef?  Even so, I just can't understand why they would do this.  The TA is probably the first dish that a punter will taste.  If this is of a very high standard, then it stands to reason that, the same punter will give the restaurant a go, and probably bring guest's along too.

Dya see where I'm coming from?

I don't think it is about profit margins either.  Most restaurants charge higher when you sit in, than when you take out, obviously to cover their overheads.  The portions are usually smaller in the restaurant too.  So, why would they absorb their profit margins in the restaurant by using more expensive ingredients?

I dunno mate, it's an interesting one, and not something that I've come across before.

Ray

[peteleton]

I agree with u it does seem a bit strange but i was so dazed after 3 years of asking questions he finally let me in the kitchen, i prob didn't ask the questions i should have and here what he was saying properly. But on my next visit i am going to ask him all the questions i should, and ill ask about both bases. After all it is a learning curve for all of us, if it wasn't we would have all the answers and be cooking curry like we all like lol. I do believe the chefs do hold stuff back but perhaps one day one of us will have the answers we all seek

[Razor]

Hi Pete,

I do believe the chefs do hold stuff back

I'm convinced a lot of them do mate, after all, if we knew how to cook what they're selling us, we wouldn't use them no more.

My local TA won't tell me sod all, but I use them alot (wife can't cook won't cook ) so they obviously want to keep my custom.

Ray

P.S,

Your profile picture is making me piss laffin, the dirty old sod lol, ;D ;D ;D