Topic: Spiced Oil

[Razor]

Hey NJ,

I also missed this, excellent and detailled post.

Can I ask, do you still produce this spiced oil and in your opinion, is it still worth the effort?

When ever I have spooned off excess oil from a curry, and used it on the next one, I believe that it most definitely adds more depth of flavour aswell as filling the room with that restaurant aroma!

Ray

[spiceyokooko]

When ever I have spooned off excess oil from a curry, and used it on the next one, I believe that it most definitely adds more depth of flavour aswell as filling the room with that restaurant aroma!

Ray, me old fruit, where have you been hiding? I've missed that bit of banter we used to have! Hope all's well with you and family etc..

And yes I agree with you here.

Whenever I've used spooned off oil in another dish, a Saag bhaji in my example, which is a relatively simple dish and easy to compare with one without reused oil, I've noticed additional depth of flavour added, but it was subtle and certainly didn't transform the dish into something else.

So my conclusion is much the same as yours, it definitely adds an additional layer of flavour but, and it's a big but, it didn't do enough for me to warrant spending lots of time making up large batches of it.

I suspect that BIR's do this out of sheer expediency, practicality and without wishing to waste all that flavoursome oil. They scoop excess oil off a dish and sling it into the base sauce. Rinse and repeat that a few times and you have lots of additional flavour, they probably also add a new pot of base to that same pot.

It would be interesting to try this ourselves just to see the taste results.

Make up a batch of base, make a dish, skim off the oil, sling it in the pot of base, freeze the dish and number it No.1. Make another dish from the base, skim off the oil, sling it in the same pot of base and freeze the dish and number it No.2 and so on till you've used all the base up.

Then taste the results in time and see if there really is a difference between No.1 dish and No. 4 or 5 or whatever.

[RubyDoo]

Not convinced you need to strain to quite this level of clarity. Put it through a fine sieve and get the lumps out yes but not to the point of it being see through. What benefit is there when it ends up in a sauce? Even a smooth sauce.  It is the taste we want and whilst I agree we do not want bits, the clarity of the oil can not really be an issue.

[Kashmiri Bob]

I suspect that BIR's do this out of sheer expediency, practicality and without wishing to waste all that flavoursome oil. They scoop excess oil off a dish and sling it into the base sauce. Rinse and repeat that a few times and you have lots of additional flavour, they probably also add a new pot of base to that same pot.

Not at my local TA.  Spooned off oil goes straight in the bin.  The oil from the deep fat fryer is also changed every night (sometimes 2 nights if it's been slow).  I have occasionally seen the chef use a small amount of oil from the top of the base gravy (there isn't that much) and added this to a curry.  I think he only does this when they are very busy, with people working behind him, and he can't easily get to the spiced stock/oil in the pre-cooked meats/veg.  Herein lies the difference perhaps?  Whereas spiced oil alone may improve a dish, stock/spiced oil will transform the end result to a completely new level.

Rob 

[ELW]

I suspect that BIR's do this out of sheer expediency, practicality and without wishing to waste all that flavoursome oil. They scoop excess oil off a dish and sling it into the base sauce. Rinse and repeat that a few times and you have lots of additional flavour, they probably also add a new pot of base to that same pot.

Not at my local TA.  Spooned off oil goes straight in the bin.  The oil from the deep fat fryer is also changed every night (sometimes 2 nights if it's been slow).  I have occasionally seen the chef use a small amount of oil from the top of the base gravy (there isn't that much) and added this to a curry.  I think he only does this when they are very busy, with people working behind him, and he can't easily get to the spiced stock/oil in the pre-cooked meats/veg.  Herein lies the difference perhaps?  Whereas spiced oil alone may improve a dish, stock/spiced oil will transform the end result to a completely new level.

Rob 

Definitely Rob, I've saw this done in an open kitchen now & posted about it yesterday. Anyone looking to re create an old style bhoona may do well to look into this. More meat stock &  less gravy. Maybe even in vegetable dishes

ELW

[spiceyokooko]

Herein lies the difference perhaps?  Whereas spiced oil alone may improve a dish, stock/spiced oil will transform the end result to a completely new level.

Rob

Could you please explain to me, exactly what you think the difference is between oil spooned off a cooked curry dish and your term stock/spiced oil and why one may improve a dish and the other transform the end result into a completely new level?

I'm not trying to be awkward here in any way, I genuinely want to understand the difference between why one is supposed to be so much more effective than the other when both in my mind appear to be produced in exactly the same way. You seem to be suggesting that somehow the meat flavours are infusing the oil, when as far as I understand it, it's the spice essential oils that infuse and flavour the oil.

It's that science v that's the way things are done kind of thing coming up again.

And baghar by the way from your original post, that your Bengali chef friend terms his method of producing this stock/spiced oil, is simply the word for the process of frying spices in oil, usually whole spices. But he seems to have adopted this name for this process.

[natterjak]

Thanks for the positive comments guys, hope some of you will give it a try.

Can I ask, do you still produce this spiced oil and in your opinion, is it still worth the effort?

Yes and yes! In fact I'm right at the end of my 2nd full batch, which means I've been through about 8 litres of the stuff since the end of last summer. It's a bit of hassle yes, but not as bad as you might think, and considering the number of curries you can cook with 4 litres of spiced oil, the effort per curry is low.

Yes I think it elevates my curries and adds a certain hard to define quality but as others have said only a side by side lab conditions test could prove the size of the effect. For me it's become a must have weapon in my BIR cooking armoury.

[natterjak]

Filtering will take a while, be patient

When cooked, allow to settle and cool then filter through a funnel lined with a coffee filter paper.  The first time I made this I used muslin cloth but it didn't filter finely enough and the oil was cloudy.  It's important to get it clear and I filter twice (use a new filter paper on the second time) to get the oil fully clear.

You must have an awful lot of patience. Every time I used coffee filter, there would always be micro-stuff causing the pores to clog and then no oil would pass. I suppose the trick might be to use a muslin cloth before the coffee filter, but by now I have lost my faith in the "spiced oil" a little. The extra work is rarely worth the effort.

The filtering isn't so bad. You need to use gravity to settle most of the gunk out before you scoop the oil off the top for filtering - that way you're not clogging your filter papers. A tall thin container helps settle the solids away from most of the oil.

Then the filtering can proceed with a couple of ladles into the funnel at a time, then go do something else, come back after 10 mins for another couple of ladles, etc. it's not like you have I stand there watching it!

[Secret Santa]

Anyone looking to re create an old style bhoona may do well to look into this. More meat stock &  less gravy. Maybe even in vegetable dishes

ELW

I wouldn't dispute the extra loveliness that a good meat stock will add to a curry but I can tell you with 100% certainty that it's not necessary for the old style bhuna flavour. Nor for that matter is a base sauce.

How do I know?

About 20 years ago I was in a rush to get out and I very hastily cobbled together a curry from raw ingredients, traditional style, no BIR practices whatsoever. Anyway, because I was simultaneously getting ready I forgot the pan and returned to what I was sure was a burnt curry in the making. Being Hank Marvin, I persevered and what do you know - it had the absolutely authentic BIR flavour of Bhuna - absolutely no mistake, I mean exactly!  ;D

Regretfully I forgot what I did and what ingredients I used, so I was never able to reproduce it (and I regularly curse myself for the loss ever since). 

[commis]

Hi
I've often wondered if spiced oil as a recipe came about because the FSA were finding bad practice in curry houses ?
Regards