Topic: New Year Resolutions 2012

[chewytikka]

pizza...mm..love it
here's one of my stuffed crust efforts with home made base and home made tomato sauce base
simples

Hi Mojo
Thanks for posting this
Wow, that looks lush, wish we had smell-a-vision, that last pic
looks soooo tempting.
cheers Chewy

[spiceyokooko]

you'll have to join the pizza site. the lack of rolling pin use is spot on.

Jerry

I think my pizza making days are long gone! It's a skill I've learnt and can reproduce as and when, but I've kind of moved on now to other things and getting this BIR Curry cracked is my priority at the moment. When I've cracked that I'll find some other culinary challenge!

But if I can help you in any way with regards to your pizza making I'd be happy to. I noticed one of the guys on that site cooking at 500 degrees C, holy cow, tell him the optimum temperature is 370 degrees C! Which is still far higher than you'll achieve in most domestic ovens. A wood fired oven is the 'heart and soul' of a good pizza.

Good Karma!

[ELW]

the pizza looks magic ...b in law built an outside oven last year, very similar to this one

http://www.villagok.dk/brickoven/index.html

Cooks a pizza in just over a minute & half
Regards
ELW

[haldi]

I bought Peter Boizot's (the founder of Pizza Express) excellent book, 'The Pizza Express Cookbook' and everything you need to create great classic thin crust pizza's is in that book.

Thanks for the tip
I've just bought it
I'm sure I'll have loads of enjoyment cooking from it
One thing I find very difficult, is to get anywhere near the takeaway "pizza aroma"
Maybe this book will help

[emin-j]

I bought Peter Boizot's (the founder of Pizza Express) excellent book, 'The Pizza Express Cookbook' and everything you need to create great classic thin crust pizza's is in that book.

Thanks for the tip
I've just bought it
I'm sure I'll have loads of enjoyment cooking from it

One thing I find very difficult, is to get anywhere near the takeaway "pizza aroma"

[/b]Maybe this book will help

OMG  Here we go again !  ;D

[curryhell]

[/center]=1324913346]
I bought Peter Boizot's (the founder of Pizza Express) excellent book, 'The Pizza Express Cookbook' and everything you need to create great classic thin crust pizza's is in that book.

Thanks for the tip
I've just bought it
I'm sure I'll have loads of enjoyment cooking from it

One thing I find very difficult, is to get anywhere near the takeaway "pizza aroma"

[/b]Maybe this book will help

OMG  Here we go again !  ;D

Funny you should say that ;D .i was thinking just the same . It's the smell of course. Now how do we get that? :

[JerryM]

some kind words and clearly pizza expertise amongst us.

the key reason for the post though being BIR - i'm always concerned that i've missed something. CA's pointer on the curry2go onion gravy is a good example - you think you know but you don't.

ELW experience (and i'm sure many others) is something i can relate to - it's relatively easy to get 95% of the way but that last gap is the hardest. probably because your bar has become that much higher.

have looked back through previous resolutions and have added a sort of update - as i see it now. CA's previously stated objective remains my priority. any thoughts or challenges very much appreciated - it's the learning that's important.

ps there are many posts covering this information and making use of the search facility is crucial in pin pointing the required understanding from the many options (sometimes the only way to prove is try it).

1) Reduce No off Bases in use - i've made many bases, many ways. the final characteristics are what is important. i'd encourage anyone serious to ask for a portion of base from there local BIR. this was a significant step forward. i only manage to get the characteristics via the 2 stage process
2) Yellow v Red Curry Base Oil - It don't matter which. i use both
3) Ashoka Marge - It's a must but in small amount. I've recently switched following chriswg recommendation to veg ghee which i feel is a tad better
4) Spice Mix v Garam Masala at frying stage - the BIR i know needs mix powder. the ashoka dishes still remain a fav and my main focus for the coming year - learn more about East End Garam work as garam never worked in KD1.
5) Burner Size - CA was right. i cook in the garage now and have upped my propane to a nice little 19kg bottle. for me you can'y cook BIR in a domestic kitchen. parker21's tip of newspaper still lives on but my good lady never was impressed
6) spice - i'd overlooked this. many thanks to ifindforu
7) salt - this was the hardest for me to crack. i now put 0.5tsp per portion in the base and add if needed upto 0.25tsp at frying
8 ) pre cooked onion - both simmered and hot fried - both versions needed depending on the dish
9) caramelised onion in base -  it makes no difference to final result (i add all in at the start)
10) technique - as CA says no one has ever been interested in cracking this. for me it's critical and simple yet intricate
11) equipment - goes without saying
12) prep crucial - this is my standard list:

a) oil from the base
b) pre cooked ashoka g/g (quite liking just garlic puree at the moment - i think you need both),
c) tom puree straight out the tin (garlic was on my mind now sorted thanks to curry2go late addition),
d) bunjarra (start with the original version to understand the basic taste/characteristics),
e) mix powder mouchak (ifindforu - need supplier with reasonable delivery charge for Eastern Star and Jalpur Garam - hint)
f) base - it's got to be thin but deceptively full of onion. no special ingredient other than depth of flavour and balance
g) parker21 red masala - for CTM
h) Secret Santa's red chilli sauce for madras and similar dishes
i) Ashoka North Indian derived green chilli sauce for vindaloo
j) fresh coriander from the freezer added with base at frying stage
k) chewytikka's nagga sauce and Green Chutney
l) the rest of the off shelf ingredients

my final thought is of recipe refinement - the vindaloo from curry2go was top notch and bodes well for getting our recipes right.

[Whandsy]

5) Burner Size - CA was right. i cook in the garage now and have upped my propane to a nice little 19kg bottle. for me you can'y cook BIR in a domestic kitchen. parker21's tip of newspaper still lives on but my good lady never was impressed

If this is correct, then many of us will be disappointed with this
I wonder if Abdul, Julian or Ifindforu could comment on whether they can replicate their restaurant dishes at home!

Let us know please

Wayne

[JerryM]

i feel my planned ashoka revisit is my biggest need (sauces and pastes, recipe refinement). the arbitrary 95% is like fell walking the ground starts off pretty much flat and a lot of ground can be covered relatively quickly.

this final gap of say 5% is far more tricky - i see it as not much ground to cover but the peaks are high.

my gut feeling is that this 5% breaks down into something like:

1% equipment
1% technique
1% sauces and pastes
1% recipe refinement
1% mix powder

given the mix powder was quite a surprise my inherent fear of missing a trick has resurfaced (you think you know but you don't) - hence the post

the 5% could be as much as 10% for example although i doubt it. is there a no 6 & 7 say.

thoughts that immediately come to mind that have gone off my radar (the 5% constituents) being:

a) things BIR's do through operation that home cooking would not naturally come across
b) things that are not discarded

i'm essentially after a sanity check so any thoughts much appreciated

[emin-j]

i feel my planned ashoka revisit is my biggest need (sauces and pastes, recipe refinement). the arbitrary 95% is like fell walking the ground starts off pretty much flat and a lot of ground can be covered relatively quickly.

this final gap of say 5% is far more tricky - i see it as not much ground to cover but the peaks are high.

my gut feeling is that this 5% breaks down into something like:

1% equipment
1% technique
1% sauces and pastes
1% recipe refinement
1% mix powder

given the mix powder was quite a surprise my inherent fear of missing a trick has resurfaced (you think you know but you don't) - hence the post

the 5% could be as much as 10% for example although i doubt it. is there a no 6 & 7 say.

thoughts that immediately come to mind that have gone off my radar (the 5% constituents) being:

a) things BIR's do through operation that home cooking would not naturally come across
b) things that are not discarded

i'm essentially after a sanity check so any thoughts much appreciated

Hi JerryM,
Things that come to mind often regarding that 5%, BIR's use fresh Base Gravy ( not from frozen like most of us )
they also are using mostly fresh Spices due to the amount they get through not weeks or even months old stuff like I use anyway 
I've recently got into Roasting my own Coffee Beans and have noticed that Beans that are much over a week old after Roasting have lost quite a lot of their flavour and Aroma when ground  and a Coffee made.