Is your handle varnished wood?  I noticed that turmeric stains on varnished/laquered wood tend to fade by themselves over a few days, particularly if exposed to sunlight.  Stains on plastic tend to last a long time!

I use Rajah extra hot chilie, they do a 'normal' chilie too.  I have not tried their normal chilie, but the extra hot is much hotter than swhartz.  1 to 1 and a half lev teaspoons (tps) of extra hot gives the same level of heat in my madras as 2 lev tablespoons (Tbs) of the Swhartz.  The Rajah gives a much more convincing 'BIR' taste also!  Havn't looked back!

Jerry

I use extra pureed tinned plum tomarto in my madras, someone else here does this also(CK perhaps?).  It adds a extra very slightly sour 'tomarto-y' taste with the cloying sweetness of puree.  About 3 tbs per 450ml of base.  You need some puree too.

Another avenue that might be worth exploring is tomarto ketchup.  Suprising I know but lots of British Chinese Restaurants (BCRs ??) do that.  It add a differnt tomarto note again, obviously sweeter (than puree even), but it might be worth exploring.  Madras from 'The Vogan' in Merstam (near me) tastes of ketchup.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if BIRs used it, it's cheap and easily availble.  After all some of them use cream of tomarto soup and Worchestshire sauce!

Well you may rightly discount this particular onion paste, but do try instead a very well caramelised onion paste added at the end of cooking. I know this is used by some BIRs and it might be what you're looking for if you haven't already tried it. Start with a couple of tablespoons to see if it helps. You have to fry the onions on a very low heat for at least an hour, and they tend to catch, so you need to stir frequently. It's particularly good in Bhunas and madrases.
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Fair one SS, I'll give it a go!  I've never been able to replicate the taste I found in one particular BIR in Leeds in 1982-1985, called 'The Islamabad'.  The currys their were all dirt cheap, and all the dishes were tasted almost the same, they all had a lovely savoury aroma 'though.  I still miss that taste, & I have found it no where else!

I'd be interested to hear more about the circumstances in which you saw this being done in a BIR.

Curry King - Thanks!

JerryM - I'd like to know more about your pizza recipies, perhaps a thread could be started for Italian stuff, in a similar vein to the chienese and Thai recepies on here, even more 'off-topic', I know, but are all 'foodies' after all! 

Will do!  Do you use (sorry moderators, at little 'off-topic') ready made pizza bases, and if so what make?

We used to make our own pizzas, using pre-bought bases all the time, but havn't done it now for a few years!

Bugger, missed it!

Thank's JerryM!

I'll look out for that make, I don't think I've seen it in my local Asian shop, but that's probably because I havn't been looking for it!

I might also give your chicken pizza topping a go!

Well, enough people whos opinions I respect have posted above, to influance me not to bother going down this road!!

I don't think I've been a member long enough to remember it. But I would certainly like to hear more about this one!

A brown onion paste??  Some have said that the missing '5%' is a savoury flavour, that others here have likened to French Onion Soup.  The preparation of Onion soup involves frying and caramlization, techniques that DO produce a savoury taste.  A paste that is brown and contains onion is likely to have been fried!  Interesting!  The counter point of view to this I supppose is that a paste is simply a thick 'bas sauce', that we all produce already, so perhaps those flavours should already be present in some base recipies?