Topic: Dhansak Video Recipe

[Ian S.]

Another cracking recipe, Chewy. Thanks.

I haven't ordered a Dhansak for years, but I have a couple of friends who like it and I'd like to cook for them sometime. Thought I'd better bench-test it first. When I cook for them, though, I don't think I'll be using Tesco 'SmartPrice' prawns, like I did tonight. Says on the bag: "May contain traces of shells". Should say: "May contain traces of prawns".

They weren't actually that bad. I've used better quality prawns before though, in a Madras, and you can tell the difference. But they're so flippin' expensive these days.

I added the pineapple chunks right at the end after cooking, as Chewy suggests, and it worked a treat. I was worried that the dish might not have enough sourness to balance the sugar and pineapple, but this wasn't the case at all. It was a good balance of sweet and sour, and pretty much as I remember from tasting Dhansaks at take-away parties.

Not a dish that I'll be cooking for myself regularly, but a nice change from my usual Vindie or Madras, and a definite inclusion on the menu of the fantasy 'Come Dine With Me' episode I'm planning for my chums, along with the Jalfrezi. I suppose, at some point, I'll have to face up to cooking a CTM and a Korma for that menu, in order to cater for all tastes. I'm not a fan of either. They taste like desserts with chunks of meat in them to me.

Anyhoo, here's a pic of my stab at Chewy's Dhansak. I think I've worked out what the 'macro' setting is for on my camera at last, so for once in my pics, this is a good representation of the colour.


 

[curryhell]

That certainly looks like  a dhansak to me.  My mouth is watering and it's only 7:20 ;D.  Certainly not my normal dish but one i think I need to add to my repertoire very soon .  Certainly echo your comments on korman and CTM :
I hope you almost burnt them spices ;D

@ Victor - happy now

[George]

That certainly looks like  a dhansak to me. 

Why do we need to see the same photo twice, as good as Ian's photo is, within a few inches of a single web page?

Bad form, and it's happening too often at this forum IMHO.

Please think before posting. Please remove images from quotes, so they don't repeat.

[chewytikka]

Hi Ian
What can I say, that looks spot on

Really pleased you gave this one a go, it looks identical in colour and texture and
the sauce looks really light and fresh.

I think your friends should be happy indeed. Well Done!

cheers Chewy

[Ian S.]

Thanks guys.

It's nice to be trying different recipes. I rarely order anything different to a Chicken Tikka Vindaloo from takeaways, so it's hard to know where to start when choosing new recipes to try at home, and how they compare. I need to cook the Dhansak again, and then I'm wondering what to try next ...

Really pleased you gave this one a go, it looks identical in colour and texture and
the sauce looks really light and fresh.

It was a nice contrast to my usual oily curries.  I think I might have fallen in love with the humble lentil. I had about 2 heaped chef's spoons cooked and set aside, and ended up using just over one. I need to bite the bullet and serve this up to a Dhansak-loving friend to see what they think. I might take the lemons out before serving, too, as they keep on 'giving' after the dish is cooked, if you see what I mean. My wedges could maybe have been a bit thinner. I suppose an alternative would be to squeeze the juice in instead, to taste?

But I rarely have such success with new recipes the first time I cook them, so this just shows how good your recipes are, Chewy. Thanks again.

I hope you almost burnt them spices ;D

Almost, CH, almost...  ;D

And as I said when I was feeding back on Chewy's Lunchtime Madras recipe, and as you've said in your singeing reports, it don't half bring out the heat in the chilli powder! I used about two thirds of a rounded tsp of Rajah standard, and it turned out to be quite fiery! I can easily back off to about half, or even less, I think, for my chilli-intolerant friends. It would be different if I was using Kashmiri chilli, I'm sure. I must try to get some.

I also need to get some ghee so I can try Chewy's Tarka Dhal - another old favourite of mine. And I'd love a recipe for Prawn Saag. Around here, you can only order it as a main dish, which takes up valuable space in my tummy and money from my wallet which I need for my Chicken Tikka Vindaloo. But if I'm sharing with a friend I usually try to talk them into splitting one with me.

I'd also like to have a go at a Roshney, if and when Chris and the rest of the boys manage to back-engineer a written recipe from the Fleet video and experience. That looks really nice.

Anyway, having cooked 5 curries in 7 days, it's time to give my arteries and my wallet a rest. So it's back to Spag Bol and Mince and Tatties till payday!

Cheers chaps

Ian
--