Topic: Cooking without oil or using low calorie spray

[mdex]

Anyone do this?

I use a low calorie spray when frying other foods but not thought about using it for curry.

Suppose it will lose some of the flavouring and the initial method of frying the spices will change a little but must be better for me.

[Salvador Dhali]

Anyone do this?

I use a low calorie spray when frying other foods but not thought about using it for curry.

Suppose it will lose some of the flavouring and the initial method of frying the spices will change a little but must be better for me.

If you're looking to recreate authentic Indian cuisine - traditional and/or BIR - then you can't avoid using oil or ghee, which forms an essential part of the cooking process that's responsible for extracting all those gorgeous flavours from the spices and other ingredients.

You can of course reduce the amount of oil or ghee that you use, but I've found that it's possible that by using the 'count 'em in, count 'em out' method, it's possible to spoon off around 70% after the curry has finished cooking. (So, if you count in 3 tablespoons of oil in, you should be able to count out just over 2 tablespoons at the end.)

So, that's under 1 tablespoon of oil in a dish that will feed two people (more when cooking traditional recipes).

A tablespoon of veg oil contains 120 calories, so 60 calories per person isn't too horrifying (to me, anyway) when you consider you're using lean cuts of chicken or meat that's served in what is essentially a spicy vegetable soup.

Compared with a Big Mac meal, damn healthy, in fact!



 

[solarsplace]

A tablespoon of veg oil contains 120 calories, so 60 calories per person isn't too horrifying (to me, anyway) when you consider you're using lean cuts of chicken or meat that's served in what is essentially a spicy vegetable soup.

Compared with a Big Mac meal, damn healthy, in fact!

Hi SD

Good way of looking at it actually! with the bonus that you do indeed know mostly which parts of an animal have gone in to your curry too!

Which is more that I could say for the 2 quarter pounders with cheese in one sitting, while noticing half way through the second that they are > 500 calories a pop!

Cheers

[mdex]

Thanks for the responses. Never thought to skim off the top at the end.

[Salvador Dhali]

A tablespoon of veg oil contains 120 calories, so 60 calories per person isn't too horrifying (to me, anyway) when you consider you're using lean cuts of chicken or meat that's served in what is essentially a spicy vegetable soup.

Compared with a Big Mac meal, damn healthy, in fact!

Hi SD

Good way of looking at it actually! with the bonus that you do indeed know mostly which parts of an animal have gone in to your curry too!

Which is more that I could say for the 2 quarter pounders with cheese in one sitting, while noticing half way through the second that they are > 500 calories a pop!

Cheers

It's my cheery little way of dealing with life on a planet that, even without the Dail Mail telling you that everything you eat and drink kills you, is so vicious, hostile and harmful to human life that it's amazing we get past infancy. Why, even the very oxygen we breathe causes us to 'rust' on a cellular level.

Yes, it's tough surviving on Earth, but I figure I can keep Mr G. Reaper waiting a fair old while by avoiding the Daily Mail and spooning the odd glug of oil off the top of my Ruby... 

Now, where's me beer and fags... ;-)

[Razor]

Guy's,

but I've found that it's possible that by using the 'count 'em in, count 'em out' method, it's possible to spoon off around 70% after the curry has finished cooking. (So, if you count in 3 tablespoons of oil in, you should be able to count out just over 2 tablespoons at the end.)

So, that's under 1 tablespoon of oil in a dish that will feed two people (more when cooking traditional recipes).

Not wishing to put a dampener on things, but don't forget the oil in the base gravy.

If your base gravy contains around 300ml of oil for a 3L yield of gravy, at 300ml of base gravy per portion, that's 30ml of oil, per portion on top of what you count in/out.  Potentially, 45ml of oil per portion, which is 3 tbsp. Still not too bad if eaten in moderation :

Ray

[Salvador Dhali]

Guy's,

but I've found that it's possible that by using the 'count 'em in, count 'em out' method, it's possible to spoon off around 70% after the curry has finished cooking. (So, if you count in 3 tablespoons of oil in, you should be able to count out just over 2 tablespoons at the end.)

So, that's under 1 tablespoon of oil in a dish that will feed two people (more when cooking traditional recipes).

Not wishing to put a dampener on things, but don't forget the oil in the base gravy.

If your base gravy contains around 300ml of oil for a 3L yield of gravy, at 300ml of base gravy per portion, that's 30ml of oil, per portion on top of what you count in/out.  Potentially, 45ml of oil per portion, which is 3 tbsp. Still not too bad if eaten in moderation :

Ray

I'd be more than happy with that amount, Razor. Now, if only I could get the moderation thing dialled... ;-)

After all, 45ml is probably less than you'll find in the average salad dressing.

I guess it can never be an exact science when it comes to curries though. I know that some of the oil becomes one with the base in the emulsification that occurs during blending, but the ultimate quantity that makes it into your curry depends on the base you use. The Taz base, for instance, is very oil heavy (but then the curry is made using the reduction method and no oil is added to the pan), whereas the Zaal base, and others like it, use very little oil.

But then much of the oil that comes to the top of the base when it's properly cooked can also be skimmed off. (I know of some who do this and use the reclaimed oil to cook their curries.)

I've never count in/counted out the oil in a base, but may well do so next time just to see how much can be skimmed off.