I rarely make 'curry' anymore, choosing to opt for dryer dishes. But after peoples comments about using left over marinade I thought I migth see what it was like cooked up.
So whilst yesterdays Tandoori chicken was scorching itself in my oven, I took the remaining marinade and poured it in a small frying pan. I through in some coconut bar (having run out of powder) and some ground almond. Surprisingly, the result was very good as I really didn't think it would be up to much. But I was wrong, the taste was very good. Perhaps a little too sweet from the coconut bar and I think the almond needed a little while longer in the pan but overall, it was good. The colour was on par for the browner CTM you mention Jerry, mainly due to the fact I do not use colouring in my marinade. Of course being a Tandoori marinade I add chilli powder, which gave the sauce a little kick which a CTM would not normally have.
Generally, I have always considered a CTM to be a red and slightly more savoury korma but with Chiken Tikka of course. So I have always wondered about the use of tomato soup. I don''t doubt this tale as we know it, but I wonder how much tomato soup was used in proportion to other ingredients. I tried using tomato soup once before but the soup was very powerful and it took alot of spicing to even come close to reducing that tomato soup taste. After a recent visit to a 'cheap' TA near us, I ordered a CTM as a trial of his standard dishes. It was awful, far too much going on with it, which given his openess about using Pataks is very understandable. But all the while I was thinking it resembled my efforts with tomato soup.