Topic: pataks condensed curry sauce

[skintfleetwood]

Hi all
Would like to know what your thoughts are
on using "pataks condensed curry sauce"as a base gravy,
have you tried it?
is this cheating?
if so why?
look forward to your thoughts.
thanks.

[Peripatetic Phil]

Hi all
Would like to know what your thoughts are on using "pataks condensed curry sauce"as a base gravy; have you tried it? is this cheating? if so why? look forward to your thoughts.

Initially it sounds a promising idea, but think it through : clearly you have to dilute it, and rather more than you would dilute it to make a curry as Patak's intend; then you use it to make your curry, and you add your preferred spicing; but it already contains spices, and although you have diluted it more than Patak's intended, they will still have a significant effect on the flavour; so which spicing is going to be more pre-denominant ?  Yours, or Patak's ?  On balance, I believe that although it might work (and would be probably be fine for a quick curry fix), you won't have the same flexibility as you would have if you made your own base (using any of the recipes on CR0) and kept the base spicing fairly minimal.

** Phil.

[skintfleetwood]

You don't have to dilute it,
plenty of juice in your chicken,beef or my favourite mutton,
also the tomatoes,
i get my mutton from a Jamaican butcher,he allways throws in a couple of scotch bonnet peppers
for my curry,
i just put the scotch bonnet in whole and let it flavour the sauce,
before anyone gives me a slagging try it.

[Peripatetic Phil]

You don't have to dilute it, plenty of juice in your chicken,beef or my favourite mutton, also the tomatoes, i get my mutton from a Jamaican butcher,he allways throws in a couple of scotch bonnet peppers for my curry, i just put the scotch bonnet in whole and let it flavour the sauce, before anyone gives me a slagging try it.

No-one's trying to "give you a slagging", Skint, least of all me.  You asked what I thought was a serious question, and I did my best to offer you a considered answer.  If you are happy to eat a curry sauce that the manufacturers themselves describe as "condensed" without first diluting it, that is your choice; but I would remind you that you asked about using it /as a base/; and there is no way that a condensed curry sauce can be of the same consistency as a typical base unless you dilute it.  My two penn'orth, take them or leave them.

** Phil.

P.S. So what's the "i cup water" in your "Fast and easy curry base" if "you don't have to dilute it" ?  Scotch mist ?

[skintfleetwood]

Hi,
Have you ever tried the curry sauce i mentioned?
you can pour it out of the tin,
the "1 cup of water" is optional,
as i have said there is ample juice in the meat and tomatoes,
Can you give me a rough idea how much your basic sauce
costs from scratch.
thanks

[Peripatetic Phil]

Have you ever tried the curry sauce i mentioned?

No, I gave up buying pre-fabricated curry sauces when I was still at Westfield College, as they were all complete and utter rubbish.  That would have been about 35--40 years ago.  Perhaps Patak's Condensed Curry Sauce is in another league -- I don't know -- but it is so easy to make a base sauce, and so satisfying to make a full BIR curry from scratch, that I can see no reason for considering tinned sauces at all, no matter how good they might be.  It's rather like the difference between buying a

[Unclefrank]

Are talking about the normal jars of Pataks sauces like these

http://www.thedrum.co.uk/news/2011/03/25/pataks-promote-paste-range-summer-campaign

to make the base with.

You could try this book
 http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Modern-Balti-Curry-Cookbook/dp/1844541940/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1345548914&sr=8-7

which involves making your own pastes to make Balti curries, i know the reviews don't give this book credit but i had great results with it.

[skintfleetwood]

No mate
It's in a tin,283g
it's called "Pataks Original"
i tried the one's you show and not got a patch on these,
Tesco and Morrissons used to do them,think Morrissons still do,
if not your local Asian Grocers,
thanks and try it.

[Unclefrank]

These are around the 2 GBP mark if you are using 2-3 tins that 4-6 GBP that's enough to buy 10kg onions plus vegetables to make your own base.
I personally don't use pataks, only for Blades Chicken, i have used the Balti paste one for an Abdul Mohed recipe and i must admit it just spoilt the whole taste of it and it went in the bin, plus the oil content and vinegar is just a little overpowering. I know it can be diluted down but for the price of the cans plus the other ingredients you use it gets a little expensive for a base.
Considering my ingredients for a 75 individual curry base costs no more than 15 GBP and that's doing 4 different bases. This includes everything from tins to fresh ingredients.

[skintfleetwood]

I get them for 79p in my local Asian supermarket.