Quote from: livo on July 18, 2022, 07:07 AM

I only used 1/2 tsp of salt, ie; 2.5g so each dish contains only 0.5 g of salt or 1/10 tsp.  Hmmmm???  Would that go part way to answering the question Santa?

I wasn't really questioning the salt content but I did add a little more to the curry on second try just to try to get some flavour from it. And I'm mildly salt averse which shows you just how bland I was finding it.

QuoteI made a half batch first up which gave me about 1.4 litres so that's about right. I've already made 4 dishes and there is enough for another.

So you're getting between 8 and ten curries per batch. I shared it out to eight portions and I think Bengali Bob is claiming 12 to 14 portions per batch. So, in fact, my curries should be even more intense than most other people's efforts but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Quote from: Bengali Bob on July 17, 2022, 01:52 PMSo, 1 tsp is 5 ml.  Now written in stone.

Ok so all we need now is ladle size - on the assumption we all end up with the same volume of base sauce, which isn't at all likely. Number of curries per batch of sauce would be better.

Quote from: Peripatetic Phil on July 17, 2022, 12:54 PMWould you not agree that your "heaped teaspoon" and my "heaped teaspoon" and MDB's "heaped teaspoon" are all probably within 15% of each other ?

Categorically no.

From this website: https://pediaa.com/what-is-the-difference-between-tablespoon-and-teaspoon/

"The size of a teaspoon can actually range from 2.5 to 7.3 ml."

There is no standard teaspoon when talking about what you casually pick out of the drawer. And the vagueness of heaped is a further contributory error factor, not to mention rounded!

I do see the potential for at least a 100% error in spice quantity. If people would just stick to verifiable measurements, such as the universally accepted 1tsp = 5mL or, preferably, avoid teaspoons altogether, life would be a lot easier and we wouldn't need to clag up this thread with this discussion.

Anyway, right or wrong, I won't be trying it again without accurate quantities.

Under normal circumstances, i.e. when making standard BIR fare, I would agree with livo and Phil about spice content. But this isn't that normal is it? The difference is that the base (reduced down) is the curry sauce. There's no added spice in the curry making stage. So I do think the spice quantity is important here. There could potentially be a difference of at least two and maybe three times the spice quantity depending on how you interpret the "teaspoon" measure. Hence why I would prefer accurate measures in the interest of accurately reproducing Mick's efforts.

And hopefully livo, as Phil has, you'd agree that the base sauce quantity used per curry is fundamentally important given that it is the curry.

Speaking from no experience I think the baltis of each balti house are not the same. The inordinate amount of cassia in this recipe apparently makes a clone of the Al Frash baltis. Maybe it wouldn't be needed for clones of other balti establishments?

Quote from: mickdabass on July 16, 2022, 09:25 AMOf the four people who have tried this, I am getting a 50:50 split on the end result.

Exactly. And why? Because two have actually tasted a real balti and two haven't. It can't be a coincidence that the two who have think this is the dogs and the two that haven't think it's bland ... not bad, just bland. As I said before there's a difference in what we're expecting, it's not because me and livo have messed up the cooking (dodgy measurements aside).

You said yourself that balti is a totally different beast and I would agree.

I'm keen to hear feedback from others who try it, good or bad.

By the way I'm really enjoying this thread. Best curry related chat we've had here for quite a while. We haven't even digressed from the main subject that much which is unusual.

There are a few areas for error in the recipe. What exactly is a heaped teaspoon? You might as well say a gross of fairy wings. And a "ladle" ... big ladle, small ladle?

Do you think you could rehash (all) the quantities to measurements that are reproducible by everyone. So actual teaspoons, i.e. 5mL, and the total portion of base sauce per curry also in mL? Or maybe because the final volume of base might vary just say how many curries are you making from this one batch of base sauce?

 

Quote from: Bengali Bob on July 15, 2022, 12:41 PMAre you sure you haven't left some of the ingredients out?        

I give up! 

Quote from: Bengali Bob on July 14, 2022, 09:46 AMMaking a Balti Lamb Saag for you tonight Santa

I'll be disappointed if I don't see scorch marks and caramelisation on the karahi.

Quote from: Bengali Bob on July 13, 2022, 06:57 PMI am getting no cassia whatsoever, zip, not even a hint.

Ok so I'm talking about the base sauce. Are you saying you can't detect cassia in the base sauce? It's hard to figure how you wouldn't notice that much cassia infusion in the base sauce. Certainly it is as you say a far more subdued effect in the curry.

As far as spices go none of mine are older than a month and the cassia was bought fresh for this base as I had run out.

Quote from: livo on July 13, 2022, 10:58 PMAs you say Santa, I've never had a Birmingham balti to compare with, so maybe this is it.

Yes it's embarrassing that as a native of Birmingham I've never had a real balti. And I'm convinced in my own mind that what we have here is a failure of expectation. I think the balti is underspiced so if we are used to normal spicy BIR fare then inevitably the balti isn't going to cut it for us.

I may be in Birmingham in a few weeks so maybe I'll pop into Shababs or one of the other balti places and see what all the fuss is about.