Why does this forum exist / Kris Dhillon / Gas Burner Discussion

[CurryCanuck]

Rumour has it that Kris Dhillon was a figment of Pat Chapman's imagination -  after he had actually tried one of his own recipes .... had a nightmare and then concocted the name . 

[George]

cc

Perhaps we should set another challenge - to find the author(s) of The Curry Secret book. It's absurd for the publishers to say they don't have any contact details. The book continues to be quite a good seller, I assume, so they must have an address for sending royalties, etc, unless perhaps it was a one-off deal whereby the publisher keeps 100% of the revenue. Is that likely, does anyone know?

Regards
George

[coolinshot]

I think the forum exists for people who are into BIR curries to exchange their ideas, recipes and stories. I log onto this forum because of the KD book not the other way round.

I recently received the "Curry Secret" as a gift and I have made some very nice (near restaurant style) curries from it. I have been into curries for years and have never been able to produce anything like a BIR curry until now. I think the book deserves all the plaudits as it gives the home enthusiast a few authentic tips and tricks - the recipes are obviously open to interpretation but it at least gets you half way there. I would think that the number of times KD is mentioned in this forum is proof that it was an important publication (important to the likes of us anyway), after all if it was that bad would it still be selling and would we be still posting about it?

I think that finding one very negative review and quoting it as if it was found carved in a tablet of stone is a little bit underhand given the vast amount of positives found on the Amazon website.

The guy that observed that curries are now changing is absolutely correct - I have not had a Madras, Vindaloo, or Rogan Josh that has been anything like the sauces I used to eat in the 70s and 80s. The texture and flavour has changed completely from those days. I find that the consistency from one restaurant to another (or even one night to another) is very shaky these days - when I was in my twenties you could basically go into any Indian restaurant and order a curry and know what it was going to look, smell and taste like.

One observation of my own - why can't you buy a decent BIR curry in a jar - after all we have all these experts in the field so it should be easy shouldn't it?

The negative response that started this thread reminded me of the catholic church's response to the DaVinci Code - me think he doth protest too loudly - it's only a book.

Col

[George]

The negative response that started this thread reminded me of the catholic church's response to the DaVinci Code - me think he doth protest too loudly - it's only a book.

CS

You've lost me in terms of the DaVinci Code, as I haven't read the book or seen the film! If you mean my opening post at this thread, I hope it was only negative in the sense that I don't rate KD's book very highly and I have a problem reconciling my experience with the dozens of rave reviews at amazon.co.uk. You say it's only a book. Does that mean you don't approve of any book review, especially negative ones?

Have you tried any of the leading recipes from this site? If so, how do they compare with the KD recipes you have tried?

Regards
George

[rallim]

If KD has a restaurant in Australia she will do really well. The curries I have tried over there are like the ones I have tried from the book: bland, insipid and not worth bothering about.
Thank goodness for this site... ;D

[coolinshot]

it was only negative in the sense that I don't rate KD's book very highly

No problem with negative reviews about the book but the impression I got from your first post, George, (and underlined) by your last one, is that you are reviewing the readers who don't have the same opinion as yourself and not the book itself.
I am not a chef but I have been hooked on Indian Curries for at least 30 years - in that time I have not eaten anything (cooked outside the BIR itself) resembling a typical BIR curry whether it was a  home-made attempt, served up by friends, English restaurants, out of a packet, Jar, tin, et al.
My point is that as soon as I tried the curry sauce from KD's book I scored a near hit (and not a tasteless, insipid one) - I saw the light.
I am not a novice when it comes to Indian curries but it has always amazed me that they were virtually impossible recreate - whether it's by Madhur Jaffrey, Lloyd Grossman, Mr & Mrs Patak, or Great Uncle Joe who lived in Bangladesh for 50 years they all turned out to bear no resemblance to the dish I was hoping for - the KD book has finally got me on the right track.
And it is that very same author that led me to this site (as I suspect a lot of others on here).
I will definitely try some of the recipes on this site and have no doubt that I will find some belters here - any suggestions as to who's recipe I should try firs, George?

Col

[Curry King]

Hi Coolinshot,

I'm no fan of the book myself but appreciate that it's as close as you can get in book form and your right it is the stepping stone that gets a lot of people into trying to recreate BIR at home.  I also agree with George in that the reviews on Amazon are misleading, if you take just the recipes on their own merit most of them are way of the mark in terms of being similar to your local BIR.  They are not stir in sauce bad but no way as close to a decent BIR as those reviews would make you believe.

If your wondering where to start why not try Bruce Edwards under the ebooks section.

cK

[coolinshot]

If your wondering where to start why not try Bruce Edwards under the ebooks section.

Thanks CK - I will give one of Bruce's a try next time I am allowed to destroy the kitchen

Col

[George]

No problem with negative reviews about the book but the impression I got from your first post, George, (and underlined) by your last one, is that you are reviewing the readers who don't have the same opinion as yourself and not the book itself.

It's true that I have great difficulty reconciling my experience of Curry Secret dishes with those reported by the reviewers at amazon.co.uk. How can so many people be so wrong, I ask myself? But I'm sure they are. The point of opening this thread was to try and understand why. Perhaps it's because people come from such different 'backgrounds' in terms of curries tried and tested. Some people may be easily pleased. I don't know.

I suggest trying Darth's 100% clone base and Madras and comparing that with the base and Madras from KD's Curry Secret book. I suggest the difference will be like night and day in favour of Darth's recipes.

Regards
George

[coolinshot]

Some people may be easily pleased. I don't know.

I assure you that I am not easily pleased, George, especially when it comes to Indian-style curries, but I am not saying that KD has come up with the Mother of all Curries either, just that the techniques / methods have shown me (and lots of other satisfied readers) the way.

I will take your suggestion and I am sure that I will find the Darth base to be delicious - I shall post my findings in due course.
In the meantime I noticed this post right here on this forum I particularly refer to the statement:
"This is where the journey began a long time ago for many on the road to curry perfection", The Boss (Admin)
https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=1652.0

"Could we teach taste or genius by rules, they would be no longer taste and genius" Joshua Reynolds

Col