Topic: Garlic chiili chicken

[mikeyp]

[mikeyp]

I think that image is too big, how do i reduce it please, not very good at this photo lark!!
Sorted now..

[Salvador Dhali]

That looks a peach!

Right, that's it. I'm going to HAVE to have a curry for lunch now.

Just two questions, mikeyp, and they are:

1. What base did you use, and

2. Did you skim the oil off before you took the picture?

Cheers

Gary

[mikeyp]

Hi thanks for your comments, i used Chewy Tikkas 4hr base and  i didn't skim off any oil, i normally just use 1tbs oil at the start, and i forgot to add the green finger chillis !!

[Salvador Dhali]

Hi thanks for your comments, i used Chewy Tikkas 4hr base and  i didn't skim off any oil, i normally just use 1tbs oil at the start, and i forgot to add the green finger chillis !!

Thanks for that. Chewy's base is excellent, though I find myself struggling to get those spices singed and fused if I use less than a chef's spoon of oil (around 2tbsp with the spoon I have).

I may try to reduce the oil gradually though, as my clothing seems to have shrunk a little of late... 

[mikeyp]

Ha ha, i'm not a lover of oily curries tbh, maybe i don't singe the spices enough but my curries still seem too taste ok, still not got that"something" that restaurants have, also i can never get the chicken just right, maybe being British we tend to err on the side of caution and always go that minute extra too ensure its really cooked lol!!!

[jb]

Very nice looks spot on to me!!!

[Salvador Dhali]

Ha ha, i'm not a lover of oily curries tbh, maybe i don't singe the spices enough but my curries still seem too taste ok, still not got that"something" that restaurants have, also i can never get the chicken just right, maybe being British we tend to err on the side of caution and always go that minute extra too ensure its really cooked lol!!!

That 'something' that restaurants have is delightfully simple, yet frustratingly difficult for us to achieve. Singeing/fusing the spices properly is a big part of it, but (IMHO) an equally big part of it is getting the cooking of the base just so. After all, it is the base that makes up 90% of the curry on your plate, so if that isn't right then you don't stand a chance. (It's a bit like using a duff stock to make a flashy sauce or 'jus'. It just isn't going to work.)

In fact, I'd say that these days the difference in my curries between 'stunning' and 'okay' is more down to whether I've got that base nailed than anything else. (Having the correct planetary alignment at the time of cooking is, of course, vital as well.  ) 

And before you ask, if I knew how I could get it nailed every time I'd tell you! But statistically, I'm pretty happy that, as Frank Zappa said, though "my dandruff is loose
An' my breath is chartreuse
I know I ain't cute
An' my voice is ka-poot...

I figure the odds be fifty-fifty...