Thanks to all the members for their continued support on this forum ... I luv you guys !
My wife has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer ... so I shall have to bid you all a fond farewell for the time being ( (I shall be pre-occupied ) - hope to see you in the near future . Thanks guys , my prayers are with you . Darth - CP - you are the best ! WU please qualify the posts - CK , use your usual expertise to keep us all on track - Ashes , do your thing dude ! Layne - keep it coming ! YF ..what can I say ...you de man  You guys are part of my global family and I most sincerely appreciate both your input and support . I shall keep in touch ( via Darth )...please keep  my wife and I in your thoughts .
The members on this site are family and I consider all of you my friends - good , bad  or indifferent .
God bless !

CC

This is a link I often refer my friends to when they are wondering what type of chili pepper to incorporate into a dish - ( heed the heat  ) I think that heat levels in curry is more of a subjective evaluation based on personal recipe experiences .Therefore , when attempting a recipe , the  end user may well find that the chili level might be subject to change based on previous perceptions .


http://www.egconsult.com/Scoville.htm

CC

Through a lot of trial and error I think that I may have stumbled across the BIR Dhansak taste that I have been searching for . I used a combination of Mike Travis' chicken curry recipe ( slightly modified ) and ifindforu's base .

         Dhansak - 2 servings

        500 g Chicken pieces.
        25g(1oz) fresh garlic,peeled.
        25g(1oz) fresh ginger,peeled.
        2 green chillies
        60ml(2fl oz) cooking oil.
        2 large onions,finely chopped.
        1 tsp turmeric powder.
        2 tsp garam masala.
        1 tsp tandoori powder
        1 tsp tamarind
        3 tsp tomato puree.
        170g(6oz) plum tomato's,peeled
        2 ladles of ifindforu?s base
        2 cups of pre-cooked lentils
        1 tsp salt.
        fresh coriander to garnish...

        (1) Place the garlic,ginger,green chillies,turmeric,chilli,garam masala,
              tandoori powder, tamarind , tomato puree,tomatoes and salt into a liquidizer and
              blend until smooth .

       (2) Heat the oil in a large pan and cook onions until golden brown then blitz until
             smooth .
       
       (3) Add the chicken pieces and the contents of the blender and stir for a few min .
             
       
      (4) Reduce the heat,cover and simmer for about an hour,stirring every 5-8 min .

 
       (5) Add the pre-cooked lentils and simmer for 5 min .

            If using pre-cooked chicken reduce simmering time .

           Thanks to Mike & Terry 

Where are the locals ? No posts for a while...no chatter ...is everyone on holiday ?? Darth , help me out her son...critique the state of the curry universe !

Considering the number of individuals that utilize this forum , it would most certainly be a " class act " if there were more contributing members . A little more support ( $$$$ ) would demonstrate a commitment to the cause . This is a unique forum with a substantial knowledge base.......if we wish to continue sharing this knowledge , a small financial pledge would go a long way to promoting the longevity of the site .
There are the " givers " and then there are the " takers ".......which category do you fall in to ...?
Just a few thoughts ...

CC

The forum is soon to reach yet another milestone , namely it's 500th member . A big vote of thanks to both the moderators ( Curry King, pete, Mark J, raygraham ) and the members that contribute on a regular basis . Well done !!! 

CC

Is anyone familiar with this site ?

http://www.madgeandgeoffrey.co.uk/

CC

This is a recipe that I came across and tried recently...found it to be quite aromatic and flavourful .

This is a North Indian curry gravy made of butter, cream and yogurt.

Ingredients
1. Oil 1/4 Cup
2. Finely chopped Onion almost pureed: 1/2 Cup
3. Minced Garlic: 1 Tablespoon
4. Ginger Chopped: 1 Inch
5. Cumin Powder: 1 Tablespoon
6. Coriander powder: 1/2 Tablespoon
7. Turmeric Powder: 1/4 teaspoon
8. Yogurt 1/4 Cup
9. Tomato Puree: 1 Cup
10. Nutmeg powder: 1/4 teaspoon
11. Cinnamon powder: 1/2 teaspoon
12. Cloves powder: 1/4 teaspoon
13. Bay leaf: 1
14. Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
15. Cayenne 1/4 teaspoon
16. Paprika  1/2 teaspoon
17. Butter: 1/4 cup
18. Heavy whipping cream: 1 Cup
19. Water: 1 Cup

Method
Step 1:  Heat pan. Heat oil. Add onions. Saut? till clear turning brown. Add garlic ginger. Stir-fry another 2 minutes.
Step 3: Add cumin, coriander, fenugrek and turmeric powders. Continue stir frying. Don't let it burn. If needed add a teaspoon of water. You need to fry only about two minutes.
Step 4:  Add yogurt. Continue stir frying till almost all the moisture from the yogurt is gone leaving you with a paste.
Step 5: Add Tomato puree, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, cloves, salt and cayenne. Continue stir-frying. It should form paste with oil exuding making it look shiny. It should take about 10 minutes.
Step 6: Add Paprika, butter and heavy cream. Simmer till you have pasty sauce about 10 minutes. Now add water to achieve the desired consistency and simmer

I have been experimenting a bit with various cuts of meat for curry by cooking the meat with a base sauce  in a slow cooker ( crockpot ) on a low setting . The results are rather good....very tender meat with intense flavour . Has anyone else used this method ?

CC

This is a rather interesting link ....worth having a gander .


http://rubymurray.com/curry/search.html


CC

Scanning the various forums , I find it rather amusing that people are constanly in search of that illusive , authentic restaurant taste and in doing so , are quite willing to sacrifice the original recipe flavour of a dish by adding either obscure or off the wall ingredients .  Time to get back to basics and perhaps read books such as those by Charmaine Solomon ( The Complete Asian Cookbook ) .

Does anyone have an authentic recipe for restaurant style chicken dhansak ? Most of the recipes that I have tried to date don't even come close .