I've been trolling around here and soaking up the succulent juices of sage advice for a few months now, and while a crazy work schedule has kept me from posting I thought it was about time to say hello, but most importantly, thanks. This is without doubt the best forum known to humanity, and the dedication of its contributors is without parallel.
As with so many here, I've been at this game for a while (I don't like to think too much about it, but dammit it's been over 30 years. Where did they go?
).
Although my parents introduced me as a babe in arms to the early wave of BIRs that began to open in London in the late '50s / early 60s (they used to plonk me in a pushchair while they laid into their madras'), what really got me started was exposure to the stunning curries of Glasgow and surrounding areas in '81 - '82, when I moved up there to work for a few years.
There's an intensity and different dimension of depth to the curries from the better establishments in Scotland, and even the more ordinary restaurants still manage to trounce many of their more southern counterparts (in my experience). Or there was back then. Maybe it's changed?
I'd never had 'that taste' from a BIR down south, and I set about trying to recreate it in my kitchen like a thing demented. Most will recognise the story. A period of intensive research followed, hassling the owners and chefs of my regular haunts, and buying everything printed on the subject (which wasn't much back then). I learnt a lot, but while I've enjoyed success reproducing (mainly Bangladeshi style) BIR dishes more common to my home ground down south, I've never come close to treading the ghee-splashed boards of the 'Scottish play'.
It became an obsession that took me towards the edge of madness.
Most of the restaurateurs I spoke with in Scotland were Pakistani, and while they were happy to chat they had absolutely no idea what I was talking about when I kept asking how the hell they did it. "How do you get "that taste", I pleaded, time and time again. "Pleeeease..."
A sympathetic shrug of the shoulders and a look that's only used when in the presence of one who is unhinged was the best I could elicit from them. At the end of '82 my job took me back south, and I ceased my quest for the Scottish Holy Grail to concentrate on refining what I
could do, which was a reasonable fist of a BIR madras, vindaloo and phall, tarka dhal and saag bahji (my favourite dishes), plus rice and various breads.
As we all have, I've had highs and lows (still do), and the learning process never stops. You wouldn't believe what I've tried (actually, you probably would), but I've learnt that simple is often best when it comes to bases and recipes, that technique is king, and that for us part timers who don't knock out hundreds of dishes a week at lightning speed, consistency is hard to achieve. There's a fine line between f**ked and fantastic.
Now I've calmed down a bit, I've also learnt that none of it really matters that much. I get so much enjoyment out of this madness I no longer worry when things don't turn out quite as expected. Gone are the tantrums and hair pulling (the latter helped immensely by anthropogenic male alopecia
); these days my curry cooking is my main form of relaxation.
And it's been greatly enhanced by the discovery of this fine portal. As said, I don't get much chance to post, but I'd like to thank those that do for an amazing job.
Keep up the great work, and if any of you know how they do it north of the border please let me know!
Cheers
Gary
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