Quote from: AchMal on March 17, 2010, 07:27 PM
a good sized upturned pot with the base removed would do the trick

Mick - do you mean a standard (allbeit large) terracotta pot from a garden centre?

That is one awesome tandoor and the brick work looks great for a non brickie. How long ago did you build this and how has it worked out after use?

Hi Axe

I think of bases and stocks as being one and the same thing. It sounds to me that what you are describing as a stock is one which has minimal (or no) spicing. Essentially I see a base (or stock) as being an onion soup and other ingredients are variations on this basic recipe.

I have several old books on cooking curries, ranging from the 1950s to 1970s. They are not BIR style at all but home style cooking. The one thing they have in common is that there is no base or stock. However the basic ingredients are the same. The recipes call for preparation of finely chopped onions, ginger, garlic etc. but it exists for that meal only and not as way of churning out dozens of curries.

It seems to me that the use of a huge stock pot brings a little more industrialisation into the cooking process in what is after all, a commercial context. Domestically however, we can aim to be as home style or as BIR as we want. Indeed there is something to be said for being both.

So for me, from a one off recipe to a clear stock to a spiced base are but points on a continuum.

Quote from: joshallen2k on March 11, 2010, 04:53 AM
I really need to do a video on naan, as its the only area I feel I've "cracked" at 100%. And that's without a tandoor.

Josh

I've never ever felt my naans were up to scratch and would love you to share your experience.

Quote from: Unclefrank on March 08, 2010, 09:32 PM
In the recipe what is the best way to do the onions,finely chopped or puree ?

Finely chop the onions to begin with, follow the rest of the recipe, then blend to make your smoothish sauce.

Quote from: Domi on February 19, 2010, 02:59 PM
Thanks for the piccie...how did it taste, Stephen?

Domi it tasted good, I think perhaps the mango chutney could be reduced without compromising the taste, I have frozen some and am taking through to my pal this Saturday so will get his opinion also.

Quote from: Secret Santa on March 04, 2010, 10:37 PM

Quote from: Stephen Lindsay on March 04, 2010, 04:45 PM
I have read some posts where people are buying the cheapest broiler birds from Farmfoods etc and think it's a bit like computers - crap in crap out.

You couldn't be more wrong in this case. But I guess you'll continue to pay twice or three times the price for chicken that tastes exactly the same. Your loss mate!   ;D

In the end, you pays your money and takes your choice. If they want to pay as little as 50p a pound for their meat, they have little cause to complain about the farmers. This of course comes at a cost. Broiler chicken farms are simply protein factories; machines for turning chicken feed into edible fibrous chicken muscle as quickly and cheaply as possible. The typical broiler chicken has around six weeks to live. At hatching, the chicks weigh just a few ounces, but when they are killed their weight may have increased to nearly five pounds. The weight of all this muscle - which is the meat we eat - can break the immature bones of the bird's skeleton. It also puts pressure on its heart and can cause heart failure and lung problems.

Meanwhile the floor of the barn is thick with droppings, and the stench of ammonia is overpowering. Many of the birds die, and their carcasses contribute to the harsh atmosphere. It is estimated that nine out of ten birds are effectively lame by the time they are killed. The ammonia released in the urine and the faeces soaked straw and wood shavings underfoot eats away the chickens legs, causing the black burns that can often be seen staining the flesh of supermarket joints.

Enjoy!!

Quote from: mickdabass on March 04, 2010, 09:13 AM
I accept that Pataks products are used in a hell of a lot of BIRs but I'm afraid I avoid using them because I think its cheating!

I agree Mick, I have never used Pataks pastes as it seems a bit like cooking a bit of chicken and chucking in someone else's spice or sauce ingredients. To me this isn't really cooking, it's taking a shortcut and "assembling".

I always like to use masalas that I have roasted and ground myself. I enjoy it as part of the fun of cooking curries. I too accept that some BIRs will use Pataks but I also accept that they have to find a way of turning out dozens of curries of an evening. I don't have to do that and also want to know what is going into my curries.

Also feel the same way about chicken. I have read some posts where people are buying the cheapest broiler birds from Farmfoods etc and think it's a bit like computers - crap in crap out.

Quote from: nai on March 04, 2010, 02:42 PM
A quick question: what are your views on the 'easy cook' basmati?

It's a bit like putting go faster stripes on a Ferrari.

Cool pics Pete - I have flambed other stuff, like maybe whiskey when cooking a cream sauce to go with steak and the burning lasts for ages so this looks a bit different.

Can I ask what is it that catching the flames - I take it that it is the oil in the pan?