Topic: Base prep for furture tests

[Malc.]

Phil, I understand your concerns and this is really why I think we should debate it properly. The one thing I would say is that all base recipes are a variant of one aren't they? I mean, they are all derived from a basic onion stock. Hence the idea to Opt 2.

Ray, yes pretty much, that is what I am suggesting. We compare the popular base recipes and strip them away until we are left with the common ingredients between them all. At which point we create an onion stock from the remaining ingredients.

This would then be cooked to the stage where you would normally blend. At which point I would suggest blending then either dividing the stock to continue to make the individual base recipes or freezing to continue on later.

[Peripatetic Phil]

Phil, I understand your concerns and this is really why I think we should debate it properly. The one thing I would say is that all base recipes are a variant of one aren't they?

Well, they all start with water  ;D  After that, although onion, ginger and garlic are (I suspect) common to most, the proportions of each will vary, so I find it difficult to believe that we can really create good replicas of half a dozen distinct bases in this way.  But as in all things CR0, I am happy to defer to the decision of the majority ...

** Phil.

P.S. Off to table tennis now; off-air until nearly midnight.

[parker21]

i will say this once and once only. you could use themouchak base i posted as a stock base , only onions /carrot/green pepper oil salt and water
cook this down first as in the recipie just cool and freeze before the blending stage imo, as you will only have to blend it anyway or at least should after defrosting a normal base.
regards
gary

[rhodriharris]

  I like the idea of one standard base with the basics - onion,water,garlic,ginger,oil,salt and green pepper and carrot, similar to all bases just without the spicing. A lot of bases seem complicated compared to the basic bases and i have to believe that base gravy started simple and that various resturants and people put their own spin on things depending on their own personal taste.
  Strip any base down and they all use these same basic ingredients, i have to believe that this is the original base gravy. I like the idea of standardising the base and adding the spicing in stage 2 which is making the curry from the base. Would it make any difference to taste if the base spices were left out of the base and added when the curry was made along with the spices for the curry?
  One thing i do know is its very confusing with all the base recipes that there are and new commers to curry bases seem to have many options when they should just start out with the basic base gravy. This site seems to not identify any one base that is best for new comers and think this would help. Like the idea of monthly tests on certain curries etc and am eager to try but only if were all working from the same page otherwise we'll get a lot of different variations. I like the KD1 base and mick/taz's base gravies and think that they are very similar.

[Malc.]

It certainly would be nice to have a standard base for newcomers to try but in respect to the recipes listed on the forum. It is best that newcomers choose which recipes they wish to try and follow them to specification including the intended base recipe etc.

For the purposes of these tests, the idea is to find as close a compromise as possible. Most restaurants have their own unique way of creating a base and then spicing the final dishes and this can include multiple stages.

What I am suggesting here is that we introduce an additional stage by making a simple onion base. Then prepare a second stage specific to each base recipe i.e. spicing etc., to make it as close as possible to the intended base. Crucially though, this would be done to create individual portions of base flavoured accordingly and prior to the final dish being made, not with the spices added at the point of cooking the final dish.