QuoteI gotta say, this is an excellent recipe!  I do wonder though, I've always thought of Madras curries having a coconut twist to them; though it's not my favorite flavour normally, I do think it was missing from this recipe.

I've never cooked with coconut myself, what would you suggest would be the best form to buy it in for this kind of dish?

Here in Canada, a "Madras" is a distant cousin of a BIR Madras, with the addition of curry leaves and coconut. This changes the curry into something quite different. But a tasty curry in its own right.

-- Josh

Great work Ray!

Its not typical BIR but surely if it gets us to more savoury BIR-like curries, then go for it.

I'm curious also what the caramelized onion of the bunjara method (when used as a base paste) would add to a curry, vs. the usual boiling method.

Very interested to see how this pans out.

Cheers,
Josh

I've never had a BIR Bhuna, at least that I can remember. I usually make CK's, and find its an excellent curry, and one of my favourites.

But Vindaloo, I would agree, there is not a recipe on cr0 that matches the best I've had in a restaurant in the UK.

I'd also say that the best ones were clearly not extra hot Madrases either. More tart, more cumin, and a different sort of heat is the best I can recollect. This supports the vindaloo paste/green chilli theory possibly.

One day soon I will revisit the UK and ask members for recommendations on where to go for a top drawer Bhuna.

Glad this thread has been dedicated to reviewing the site.

Lol!!!!  ;D

I've been meaning to try this recipe for a while.

Question for the Brits... how big is a "tin of tomatoes"?

Here they come in 28 fl oz cans and 14 fl oz cans.

Thanks in advance!

-- Josh

I also tried this base as well as the Madras to spec.

The base was moorish and creamy. A little pale in colour to the usual bases I have made. While it was definitely tasty, I found the base more bland than my usuals. I put this down to the very minimal spicing.

The Madras was good (some measurements were missing from the recipe JB gave, so I used typical measurements from previous Madras recipes). However it was noticeably less hot than usual (used 1.5tsp of extra hot chilli powder) and spicing was not as robust as usual. Tasty meal nonetheless.

My conclusion is that this base and Madras recipe is authentic BIR. I do wonder about the ingredient ratios in the base (esp the spices) and if the chef scaled down slightly off. The finished Madras also could have suffered from lack of specific measurements.

Good stuff JB, please keep it coming.

Cheers,
Josh

Strange. I know that g/g paste without oil goes green quickly.

I make my own and blend in a coffee grinder with a little water and some oil. No heating or whatnot. It lasts a few weeks easy in the fridge in a sealed container and does not go green at all.

-- Josh

That's one ugly dude.

Naan seems to be very subjective as to what individuals are looking for.

Personally I had great results and still do modifying UB's V2 recipe to add yeast (must be instant dry yeast - thanks JerryM!). I've made a few mods since then - added yogurt, eliminated water for whole milk, eliminated baking powder...

In terms of crisp and puff, for me the pizza stone is a must to simulate the tandoor. The highest heat and low cooking time to me are critical also.

Naan is one of the few things I feel I do as well or better than many restaurants I've frequented, and thats without a tandoor.

-- Josh

JB - awesome posts! Fantastic stuff.

Just a couple of questions:

- How would you rate the curries from this restaurant? Did they have the taste we all associate with the best ones?

- Did the mini-base recipe look / taste exactly like the full base they were using in the restaurant?

Really looking forward to more on the chilli sauce, and the other recipes!!!

Great stuff!

-- Josh