I found the site following something I read on here when I first joined. So went to have a look, joined, only to find that if you want the so called secret recipes, you have to pay them a yearly subscription.

I have compared some of the recipes with recipes I know are authentic and they are not even close. So I have never returned.

I know I am now rooted on CR0 but the site you mention is poorly laid out, hard to navigate and only seems intent on taking your money. Good luck to them, but I won't be returning.

It could well be and its definitely something I aim to find out. Perhaps they use the Tandoor to precook certain meats. The Tandoor for certain, was not fired up when I visited for the Bhaji demo and by the time the other cooking processes had started, the pilau rice process especially, the aroma's had all but engulfed the smoky aroma.

I have also taken a mental note of when certain processes are being done as well. They only have a small kitchen and with 3 or 4 people in their, you have to be polite.   So perhaps different processes are done on different days for this reason. For instance, they make base (garabi as they call it) Monday and Saturday, the Onion Bhaji demo I had was on Thursday and the Pilau rice was being prepared too. Which produced some very interesting aroma's along its way.

What I don't understand though, is why I have only just noticed this smell. I don't ever recall having smelt it in the restaurant during service. Perhaps like many things I have come to learn, I just wasn't ware of it or even looking it for it. But it is interesting to learn that some BIR's use Charcoal.

This is something, I definitely won't be able to re-create at home.

I had the same thing with my Volvo too, only that was only 6 months old at the time. what made it even worse was that I even struggled to loosen the wheel nuts. I have no idea who done them up, but they were far too tight.

With it being a popular problem, you'd think manufacturers would rectify it. I can under stand why some hubs are the way they are but the Ford Focus my wife drives, has studs not bolts.

I got a call from the M-I-L asking me to ring the wife as she's pulled over to the side of a road with a puncture. Why the wife didn't phone me I don't know but sure enough, I ring and the wife confirms this along with her location. Fortunately it was not to far, so off I gallop like a knight in shinning armour to rescue my fair maiden in distress.

I arrive to find the flat tyre and the wife looking fed up. "Fear not" I say in a bold voice, "we'll have this sorted in no time".

Well from that point onward, it all started turning into a fiasco. She'd been complaining previously about a wet floor in the rear passenger foot well. Didn't know why at the time but it soon becomes apparent that, rain was collecting in the spare wheel well, some how. So now picture this, a rusty spare wheel sitting in a pool of water and rusted fast the wheel securing pin! Eventually, I manage to get this loose and reveal the spare and the jack.

I  then set about to loosen the wheel nuts and jack the car up. All of this done majestically in true hero fashion. Off come the wheel nuts and finally the ..... and finally the ......and finally the.... bugger, the wheel won't come off. Not wishing to cause any alarm to my fair maiden, I ponder quietly as to what to do before exclaiming, "I shall give it a kick"! Still nothing, so I kick some more.

Starting to loose my cool exterior I suggest to the wife "perhaps if you knock on that chaps door, he might offer you a hammer". She returns with said tool and hands it too me. I set about in all manor of ways, trying to 'hammer' some sense into the situation, but only managing to annoy the neighbourhood with clanging.

Eventually I concede that despite might bravest and best efforts, I shall not be her saviour presently. Knowing a tyre bay is just down the road, I set off to ask if a crisp

I'll have to find out, I thought it would be gas powered with Lava Rock rather like a BBQ.

Quote from: commis on April 08, 2010, 11:40 AM
Jerry, salting the onions draws water from the onion in the same way as with tomato.

Spot on, which is why salt is used to cure and/or preserve meat, fish etc.

I would doubt that chopped onion is treated in such a manor in the restaurants. All the flavour and sugars are locked in that moisture.


PS Are you cooking in your garage?

Domi, that's a very good point I hadn't considered that. Would they use charcoal in a commercial kitchen though? Excuse me being naive.

I shall look out for this, I have become quite a fan of Chapatti lately.

Something that has been on my mind regarding process is a particular smell that I have noticed. I noticed this the first time the IG Chef came to our offices. I couldn't put my finger on it but it smelt like he'd just eaten a good quality smoked bacon sandwich (don't laugh). This same smell I noticed lingering in the restaurant when I went there one morning to see the owner.

The next time I smelt this was when I attended the kitchen demo when it was much stronger and finally again yesterday when the owner came to our offices. I still can't put my finger on it but it smells very similar to an Inglenook log fire roaring away.

I can only assume that this is from a process performed in the Kitchen. So I immediately think of a smoking process, but for what? Do they smoke certain spices before use or is it meat or chicken that they smoke? Are they using a smoking at all or could this smoky smell come from cooking certain spices?

Has anyone else experienced this or have an idea of what process might be creating this smell?