Very nice looking, esp the veg masala!
How did the bhajis work in the oven? Havent heard of that method before

Sounds good chris! How hot is it with the kashmiri paste in there?
What do you mean by aniseed- is it ground star anise or fennel seeds or something?

I havent been on the site for a while but you're doing some really good work with these side-by-side tests! Nice one! I'm up for joining in with the onion bhaji test which is imminent i believe. I've just lost my job so have at least the next week free.

I find most BIR bhajis disappointing TBH - they're often bland or dry and need smothering in raita or chutney.
I really like having whole spices in them. Coriander, cumin and fennel seeds give flavour bursts which vary the taste of the bhaji. That's my top tip

Quote from: 976bar on May 23, 2010, 08:56 PM
Chris, Chris, Chris..........

What are we to do with you? If Churchill had the same mind as you we would all be Germans now!!!!!!!!!

Get in there my son, for King and Country!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ok for fellow curry cookers

Hehe, but yeah i agree with the others, if you leave it they'll forget what they agreed to

I have this book and tried this recipe once (as well as the boiled onion paste and one of the base gravies). It was smelling good until i added the yoghurt, which sort of killed it. It smothered the flavour really. I remember the same being true of the cashewnut paste recipe too.

Quote from: commis on April 23, 2010, 08:53 AM
This is all starting to tie in with a conversation I had the other week. Not sure if people will except what I was told, as it's going to go against some pre conceptions.

dont leave us hanging!  ;D

Quote from: PaulP on April 12, 2010, 04:58 PM
I've noticed from here and other sources that for BIR style curries the spice mix usually contains proportions (in roughly descending order) of Turmeric, Corriander, Cumin, Paprika and Curry powder.

I wonder what the origin of this spice mix is. I've searched for Bangladeshi and Bengali recipes but not found anything similar.

I noticed these were the most common spices in recipes that werent BIR too though Paul. A point to remember is that indian cookbooks probably arent a true reflection of what most indians/bangladeshis eat. They are usually dishes for the rich or for banquets. I suspect the 'average cook' uses simpler ingredients and what they have at hand. I reckon our members have more spices in our kitchens than most indians! I have no proof for this, just a hunch!

I saw this 'BIR spice mix' used in a restaurant in udaipur, rajastan where i had some lessons. They mixed ground turmeric, coriander, cumin and kashmiri chilli powder (similar to paprika), salt and MDH curry king. Identical to a lot of BIR mixes i've come across and i dont imagine the chef had any connections to bangladesh or the UK.
The only other spices he had was a box with cassia, cloves, aniseed, bay leaves and both cardomoms all mixed up.

I've mentioned it other threads but he used MSG, red colouring and ketchup for the kadai we made. (i just wanted to point out that using commercial curry powder and sweet sauces such as ketchup or mango chutney arent just british influences)

Quote from: joshallen2k on April 22, 2010, 04:27 AM
Strange, I was under the impression that "Indian" from India was less hot and more bland.

Most of the authentic dishes I've tried seemed that way compared to BIR curry anyway...

More complex flavouring though, and seemingly more ingredients.

I found that generally true too 

I had a look at one of his books recently and the indian stuff was southern indian. He explained he knew the owner of rasa restaurants in london which cooks keralan food.
His base is likely to be influenced by this i suppose.
Keralan food's very different to BIR in my experience. Lighter, thinner and coconutty as opposed to dark, strong and savoury.

Quote from: peterandjen on April 20, 2010, 09:41 AM
I like my base  to be like a weak curry sauce, it looks ,like curry only watered down, but definately tastes like curry, only weaker

This is what i've had best results with too. /the ashoka one being a good example.
I havent tried that many different bases though.

Quote from: Axe on April 06, 2010, 10:43 AM
I had chicken hearts in a curry once, they were actually quite tastey. But that was a different ball game all togther. Hehe, gerrit?

.....i'll get my coat. ;D

Joking aside, the ingredients look revolting but the finished dish disguises them well.

I've only heard good things about chicken (& pidgeon) hearts, they seem to be a bit of a chef's treat. And yes i agree the raw unprepared testicles look completely unappetising! But you know when you see them looking at you every time you walk in your shop you've got to try them out!

Y'all lucky my latest experiment didnt turn out well - ox lung seek kebabs. They just didnt coagulate properly and wouldnt cling to the skewers. The meat balls that resulted werent the full package. Lung bolognese was better, although more sinew than you'd ideally want.