Hi Commis,here is that recipe,this amount normally makes enough for 2.

3-4 TBS Oil or enough to stop the onions burning.
1/2-1 Onion
1 Chilli
1/2 TS Salt
1 TBS Ginger/Garlic paste
1/2 TS Cumin seeds
1 TBS Paprika
3-4 TS Curry powder
1/2 TS Turmeric
2 Cloves of garlic
1/2 TS Sugar
1/2 Tin of tomatoes
1/2 TS Tomato puree
1 TS Coriander powder
Cream(optional)
Water
Handful of fresh Coriander

Add chopped onion to oil.
Add salt
Add chopped Chilli
Add Garlic/Ginger paste
Add Garlic
Add Cumin seeds

Fry all these off until onions are soft.

Then add,Curry powder,paprika,turmeric,Coriander powder,sugar

Fry all of this,might have to add some more oil at this stage.About 5 minutes.
Add Tomatoes,continue cooking for about 10 minutes.Add water if needed.

Next blend all of this to a fine paste,this is optional,depends if you want onions,garlic etc or not.

Return to heat and add the puree and continue cooking for half hour,adding water if needed,depends on the thickness/thiness you prefer.

Add the cream and cook for further 10 mins (optional)
Add fresh Coriander then serve.

I do tweak this recipe from time to time,might add some cardoman pods and cloves to it,see what happens then!!

Razor,looking through all your ingredients,i have them all apart from all purpose seasoning(no idea what it is) and Methi powder(again,not sure what that is)i guess omitting them would not be a good move?

Thanks Mikka i will have a look at those videos,that will help.
Thanks Razor,that all makes sense,perfectly written for a halfwit like me!!

Id love to try all this today,but the other half wants a roast,how bland!!

When you use 300ml of the base,how many will this recipe serve?

And one last question(sorry),the base recipe,how many ml's will this yield?
Obviously it will be a lot,so i guess i would have to freeze it in 300 ml batches,thats if 300ml feeds however many people?

I will try all this next saturday and will let you know how it turns out.

I take it that using your mix and base,i could not only make a madras,but a bhuna etc,just have to find the relevant recipe.

Thank you Razor for your detailed help.
What you say makes sense,ill have to spend a day in peace making the recipes you gave.

Let me see if i understood all that.
1-make a spice mix
2-make a base.

I have looked at both of your recipes for these,so now this is where i get lost!!

I want to make a BIR,say a madras.
How do i start? lets say i have the base and spice mix ready made,what do i do first?
I guess i need to read the forums a bit more.

Incidently i was giving a recipe by my daughter who got it off a friends husband who was apparantly a chef in an Indian restuarant,but it has no base or mix,just a combination of spices and how to cook it,so i guess it cannot be authentic because as you say,the restuarants can knock out different curries every 10-20 mins,and with his recipe you would be waiting hours for each curry!!

Thank you again,john

Hi,i bought a tub of roasted curry powder made by suryaa,its from India and its mild(which i assure you it is nothing but mild,its very hot!)

The ingredients are in order,red chilli,coriander,cumin,fenner?,fenugreek,turmeric,black pepper,clove,cinnamon,curry leaves.

I notice no garlic,ginger etc.

When cooked it is very hot,and not to my curry taste at all,i was wondering if anyone knows what would be good to add or a recipe,i see that most recipes on here all start with a base,but i would rather be lazy and cut all that out,or is that where i am going wrong?
When i use Tesco curry powder(don't laugh)i add other spices and those curries come out really well.
I was chuffed getting hold of this Indian curry powder,but as far a bit disappointed.
Help/advice anyone?

Thank you Cory,,learning all the time now!!

Sorry for my ignorance,but if you mix all those ingredients together,wheres the liquid?
Or is there meant to be none? Thanks.

Oh forgot to add,the day before i made this rice recipe i was given my first ever rice cooker,thought all my problems would go,however it was ok,but nothing to shout from the rooftops,but now i think i will pass it on to someone else as i do not need it now,so thanks Cory for your recipe/method,it's blinding m8.

I'd just like to say i tried this today and bingo!!!!  Perfection!!!
Mind you all i had to hand was the Cardomen pods,cloves,cumin seeds,salt and clourings.
Came out brilliant just like a Bir,so many thanks for the recipe,now all i got to do is to work out how to do a decent curry!!!

Thanks Jerry for your words of encouragement!!
Seems there is soooo much to do in trying to recreate a restaurant curry!
Over the years ive tried so many ways to cook and different flavours and yet still no nearer!!
Maybe we should all stick to just using a Pataks paste!

Or perhaps,maybe we have produced something near to a Bir but it has not registered in own minds.
I mean sometimes i'll make a curry and friends will say how great it is,yet i might hardly touch mine,might be because sometimes when you have been cooking,you sit down to eat and bang,your appetite has just gone even though your hungry!!
sounds crazy i know,but this has happened a few times to me.

Or,when we go to a restaurant,we have paid good money,so an appetite seems to come on stronger even if the food is just standard.

Well i am trying to make excuses for my/our failures,but maybe its just in our minds and not our tastebuds?

I mean,how hard can it be to produce a decent type restaurant curry!!!!!

Seems its easier to find our government secrets than it is to produce an authentic curry!!