Topic: my latest attempt

[jb]

After cooking the scaled down base sauce kindly supplied by Mick from the Little India I decided to try it out on a few dishes.I did a chicken madras,vegetable balti and masala sauce from the recipe from the Zaal restaurant.

chicken madras...



vegetable balti...



masala sauce...





The mix powder was one from Mick's book,using Rajah premium madras powder kindly supplied by someone on the forum(can't remember who it was sorry but the stuff has a lovely aroma).I used some Jaipur garam masala which was kindly supplied by Ifind4u.Comparing that with my usual Rajah stuff is unbelievable.

Was it as good as my local curry house??  I honestly don't know I've been cooking/preparing over a couple of days and I'm really suffering from spice overload,although the wife was spluttering as I was cooking the spices out making the main dishes so I guess that's a good sign!!  The masala sauce was spot on though,very nice indeed.The one I've wanted to nail is madras.It's all going into the fridge ready for tomorrow so hopefully I'll be ablt to judge the results a bit better.

 

[natterjak]

The mix powder was one from Mick's book,using Rajah premium madras powder kindly supplied by someone on the forum
<snip>
The one I've wanted to nail is madras.It's all going into the fridge ready for tomorrow so hopefully I'll be ablt to judge the results a bit better.

Which of Mick's mix powders did you use JB? Mix powder 1 or 2?
On the madras, don't know if you've tried chewytikka's madras recipe but for me it's case solved on madras. 100% authentic to my local BIRs (as long as you singe the spices) so worth a try if you've not already.

[skronk]

If it tastes half as good as it looks it will be wonderful !

[976bar]

Spot on JB!!

[colin grigson]

A great looking trio there JB .. well done , please let us know your thoughts re taste and so on .   

[Naga]

Certainly looks the business! I haven't tried a Madras yet, so I must rectify that omission immediately.

[Aussie Mick]

Looking good mate

[jb]

Well just polished the lot off.The taste has definitely improved overnight in the fridge,so has my sense of smell!

Masala was spot on as well the balti.The madras was as close as I've ever got,texture,taste and aroma was very very good.There's still an underlying taste in every madras I get from a T/A though that I can't match.Can't put my finger on it just a deep savoury taste that every BIR chef manages to obtain very easily.Is it something that's in the gravy?(although CBM's recent Little India Video leads me to think overwise).I've watched just about every piece of footage of these chefs in action in their kitchens,they make it look so easy with the minimal amount of ingredients and nothing apparently secret so where does that taste some from??  I know we've debated it for years but it's so frustrating to be so near yet still missing the last piece of the taste.

Anyway I have loads of base left so I've got plenty of time to practice!!!  ps thanks for the kind comments!!

JB

[jb]

Forgot to say I used the first spice mix in Mick's book.I haven't tried chewytikka's version although the madras I did was nearly indentical apart from no worcester sauce.I also used normal chili powder and not kashmiri chili powder.I've never used this stuff is there a whole lot of difference and is it worthwhile getting hold of some??  I really want to crack this madras thing,I notice chewytikka's madras does contain a lot more chili powder than I added(only one teaspoon).

[PaulP]

Hi Jb, your food photos look great.

Was a scaled down recipe (with quantities) ever posted for the CBM Little India base?
I would love to see a recipe for this that makes a manageable amount for home cooking.

Cheers,

Paul