Topic: cardamon pods when to use

[Peripatetic Phil]

What are the obvious difference of a London BIR, to a Scottish one?

Some 20 or so years ago, I had reached the distinct impression that the further that one got from London, the milder the curries were.  So, when I had a few hours to kill while waiting for a flight from Glasgow Airport, I decided to go for a curry, and as Glasgow was so far from London, I ordered a Bangalore Phal, expecting it to be about Madras strength on my personal scale.

Oh what a mistake that was.  That Bangalore Phal was seriously hot, and I had to nurse it in my insides all the way from Glasgow to London on a Trident : never again !

** Phil.

[Razor]

Hi TC

So here's the thing. We maybe comparing nationwide recipes, with regional benchmarks of end result. No wonder what works for one, may not for another. Is this getting too deep?

No, it's not getting too deep, it's a very valid point!  For me, a Jal Frezi should be quite low on sauce, maybe not quite as dry as a bhuna but certainly not as wet as a madras.  I've never ever seen a Jal frezi with egg in it, as per Domi's findings but around her way, it's done no other way!  Regional variances certainly play their part.

I never see cardamoms in any dish here.  I do recall finding the odd one in rice but certainly never in a main curry.

Ray

[Domi]

Hi Razor

I use cardamom seeds in more complex dishes (they're in the takeaway dopiazas, bhunas, jalfrezis and pathias here) and my "from scratch" curries. I use them in pilau rice and samosas too...it's a rarity to find them in other mains here nowadays but in the old days you'd regularly find them in dishes along with cumin seeds (or babies toenails as my mate used to call them)....hardly ever find cumin seeds in mains now either unless in a restaurant as opposed to a local takeaway...then again we rarely get potato in a vindaloo though on most menus it's listed as an ingredient.

I wouldn't use them in madras or vindaloo which as we know don't use as many spices in the making.

[telecaster445]

Ok thanks Guys!  Add to this I sometimes find a star anise in Do piazas. Now this is a real treat!!

Sounds like South London may be the place for whole spices! Having said that, madras and vinds are smooth as the proverbial (as they should be).

I haven't heard much from the Midlands (balti belt). Are these so regional that they are not considered BIRs? Not having visited, how do they compare? I sometimes get the impression that Balti is just another standard dish round my way and has no real link to the the pan. The menu will often wax lyrical about special herbs and spices, cooked in an authentic balti pan. Cobblers! I bet its cooked in identical pan as my chicken madras. It may get served up in a pan with 2 handles! In fact it tastes like other house curries, with perhaps more garlic and ginger, plus chunky veg. Considered tad overpriced for what they are.

[JerryM]

as telecaster points out it really is quite amazing this regional thing.

i think it's probably even muddier than we think.

a best mate in the midlands who's just as curry mad would not like cardamom. no cardamom in the North West. i'm not keen on methi but star anis is in with the cardamom for me. i don't like curry in bradford which is another fact i find difficult to fit into this regional picture.

ps balti in the midlands is for definite very different to BIR. trouble is a lot of BIR's have become balti houses by name but not by food.

Chaa006 difficulties across the boarder are difficult to keep a lid on yet are further proof of how diverse this regional variation is and for me what is so good about our passion.