Oils don't have to reach a smoke-temperature before they change their properties and become less healthy.

One of the reasons I switched to groundnut oil is that I heard an 'expert' suggest that, whilst it was not much more healthy than sunflower oil when cold, after heating sunflower oil becomes extremely bad for you.

We've all heard that monounsaturates are the best, poly- the next best and saturated the worst type of lipids; and groundnut oil lies midway between the healthier olive oil and the 'neutral' sunflower oil, but apparently the situation changes after the oils have been heated just once, and to quite a low temperature!

Apparently groundnut oil is the healthiest to cook with; sunflower oil, regarded as ambivilent when unheated becomes EXTREMELY bad for you after heating.  Olive oil effects the taste of the curry.

I have used Rice bran oil too, but I excepting it's relatively benign properties when cold, I have no idea what it's like after it has been heated!  I'd like more info on this!

Anyway the Misses and I stick to groundnut for curry and chinky, and olive oil for the Mediteranian stuff; which we think is a good compromise on taste v. health.

Low-fat food is SOOOO boring!

Quote from: ThaiExpat on December 18, 2010, 06:30 PM
Razor, I'm just about to try cooking this up and the first thing that I get is Chef's spoon, I'm sorry but please put any measurements in the recognised amounts , a chef spon is not a standard, a tea or tablespoons is recognised the world over, members of this site moan about getting things right and then we get a measurement that is really unquantifiable, I'm sorry but you might as well say get a big spoon and chuck a big dollop in.

1 x Chef spoon = 4 x (15ml) Tbs

Quote from: Secret Santa on October 25, 2010, 02:46 PM

Quote from: adriandavidb on October 24, 2010, 11:17 PMI can assure it was cooked properly: arrogant shit arn't you!

Pot calling the kettle black there adriadavidb. I seem to recall you telling me I couldn't cook...not so nice when it's fired back at you is it?   ;D

Ouch, are you sure SS?  My recollection of those posts was different, but I'm quite willing to eat humble pie if I'm wrong! 

Quote from: Secret Santa on October 25, 2010, 03:19 PM

Quote from: George on October 25, 2010, 03:02 PM

Quote from: adriandavidb on October 25, 2010, 11:21 AM
I try to produce a base that stands the test of being served on its own a a spicy soup!  If it does that, it's good.

Another good point and I genuinely don't know the answer to this one - I can't make my mind up. Is base a simple ingredient which can only be assessed in conjunction with the final curry or, if the base tastes good, like nice soup, will that always bode well for the final curry?

Has anyone tried tasting dried or fresh yeast? I doubt if it's pleasant at all, but freshly baked bread is normally very nice. Does this sort of argument apply to base sauce, or not?

Being able to serve a base as a stand alone dish is, I suppose, no bad thing but I absolutely disagree that a tasty base is a neccessity for a tasty curry.

In adrandavidb's previous post he even admits to making a 'bitter' base which then was used to make adequate curries because the bitterness was balanced by the final cooking in the curry.

I've said it before and I'll say it again (and again), a delicious base is NOT a prerequisite of a tasty curry and to judge a base by its flavour on its own is terribly misguided.

That's not to say that if you make a real pigs ear of the base that you will always be able to make a good curry...it's all  matter of balance between the base and the curry!

I quite agree with you SS, a tasty base is not necessarily a prerequesite for a good curry, I say so above; it's just a benchmark I use to assess the quality of my bases, besides it does actually make a great soup!!

Looking back on my last two posts, you are right, that language was not justified, and for that I'm sorry.

What absolutely galled me however, was that you ASSUMED I didn't know what I was doing without even taking the trouble to ask!!

I could expand at length on what happened, and you could glean something of what I did by reading the thread I started some time ago: 'bitterness in base sauces', if it is still extant.

In a nutshell however, in trials where all other variables were kept constant, I found that bitterness had NOTHING to do with:-

A) Not enough salt in the base making process.

B) Inconsistancy in quality of ingredients (repeatable results with different batches of veg)

C) Ginger used with skin; without skin, & without skin and without a 5mm layer of flesh immediatley under the skin.

I ultimately found that an excess of ginger gives a flavour that many would discribe as bitter, but is probably an artifact caused by the preponderance of ginger interacting with the other flavours present (certainly 'bitter' to me).  these flavours were never evident in the final dishes cooked with these bases, either corrected (proabably by the excess ginger elements being 'fried-off'), or perhaps disguised by the overall flavour of the finished dish.  However it was markely detrimental to the flavour of the base itself.

Perhaps becasue I am so self-critical of my efforts, I try to produce a base that stands the test of being served on its own a a spicy soup!  If it does that, it's good.

Reducing ginger in a 'boiled' base; or reducing its impact by frying it  first completely cured the problem.

I could go on for several more paragraphs about EXACTLY what I tried, but you are likely I think, to still remain with the impression that you know best!

Believe it or not MATE, you're not the only one who can cook. 

I am FULLY aware that the skin on ginger can casue bitterness, in spite of the fact that some think the best flavour is immedialtely under the skin.

I am also FULLY aware how difrerent cooking methods (eg frying rather than boiling) can be used to ameliorate this

ONE OF FIRST THINGS I TRIED WAS REMOVING FAR MORE FLESH UNDER THE SKIN THAN WAS NEEDED.

I really DO NOT appreciate being told my methods are flawed, by some TWAT who just ASSUMES that I don't know what I doing!  I tried EVERY possible variable in my bases and THE ONLY one that made a difference was REDUCING the ginger

Get off your high horse!

Quote from: gazman1976 on October 24, 2010, 04:16 PM
Tumeric has no affect on the flavour when used - ginger is only bitter if NOT cooked properly - thats why i said his method was FLAWED - probably not peeled thinly enough or cooked properly

I can assure it was cooked properly: arrogant shit arn't you!

Quote from: gazman1976 on October 24, 2010, 09:59 AM
ginger would not cause the bitter taste im afraid

It does mate!  I've done many experiments on this, see my post ages ago 'bitterness in base sauces', after A lot a experiments Ifound the bitterness was caused by too much boiled ginger in the base, NOT THE ONIONS AT ALL!!  It is also responsible for the strange greenish colour.

Quote from: haldi on October 23, 2010, 07:45 PM
The onions remained bitter

The finished base colour was sort of a green as well

It's not the onions,  it's too much ginger that causes both of these effects.

Quote from: jb on October 19, 2010, 08:20 PM
[Also the chicken bones they have are boiled and the result is also put into the gravy.

At last !!  Coroboration that 'home-made' (not commercial) chicken stock is used in BIR.  I've banged-on about his many times (My local BIR chef told me he did this), and I do it myself ALL the time.  I've mentioned it a few times in posts on this site, and people have questioned it without trying it for themselves.  THIS GETS ME CLOSED TO THE BIR TASTE THAN ANY OTHER SINGLE THING!