hi stephen, dude don't take it personally mate he is not saying your a crap cook or that you have not had a curry with the taste and the very distinctive smell you only get with BIR food. if you have had a curry with the taste and smell and can reproduce it then i'm sure you would remember it and then it would be great if you post your recipes so that we can all do it
what you have to remember is everyone is different and just because 1 person says in his opinion that generalises across the board, unfortunately regionality and personal tastes ie what we are all looking for will be different!

cheers and keep smiling after all curry is fun ;D
regards
gary

hi stephen this is not meant as a critisism or to put down anyone, but what does this say about most of todays BIR. thngs have changed over time and things have been lost, whether techniques and methods (ie ways of doing things) have changed ingredients have been sourced differently. many people who have been trying for many years since the 1970's at least to recreate the "old school curries" that they remember eating then. sitting in an aroma filled restaurant with flock wallpaper, poor lighting, indian music playing in the background etc. and eating the best curries with that taste and smell that they will never forget and never going to be able to recreate unless they can get hold of a very old 'indian/bangladeshi/punjabi' chef that will pass on that wisdom. it could also be due to health and safety reasons that things changed!
most peeps just want to able to recreate their locals madras or vindaloo or CTM and happy to get close just as long as they have the taste that they are looking for. regionality and personal taste differ greatly and so does what we are all looking for but a good curry will have that taste and this is your taste!

if you are cooking your curries and are happy and then someone says this taste and smells like a takeaway or better tahn a restaurant they have been to just smile to yourself and say thank you
kind regards
gary

hi winybum
there is a tandoori masala recipe on this site that uses pataks pastes, tandoori, tikka and kashmiri masala mixed with sugar coconut powder and cream . i have used it and my friend loves my CTM, and pete had sen a demo using this masala in a restaurant CTM.
regards
gary

hi asda chicken vindaloo or phall meal from the curry counter with rice and naan. would not do the side dishes as i find them under cooked. but not bad for the price, for my wife i will actually get just the curry and so asda i will do 1 myself ;D
regards
gary

hi guys sorry not too good still with this linking but the recipe is on page 4 in the BIR recipe request section.... under the heading of hot red sauce! :-[
regards
gary

hi grandmasterew you could try adding more flour until you can mould it then leave it to rise.
hope this helps
regards
gary

hi bibble in the search bar type in "hot red sauce " there is a recipe for this sauce you seek.
welcome to the cr0
regards
gary

hi CA have you not tried the rogan josh sauce from the BE curry house cookery then? as i doubt whether a BIR would have a separate spice mix for the individual dishes you rightly question.
btw malachyte great pic mate looks good enough to eat :
regards
gary

hi bb my base of choice is rajver stylee adding tomato paste( white tower) and fresh tomatoes and sometimes without the coconut milk or block and the spice mix is just rajver spice mix how mch is down to the amount of onions i am using9 as i don't weigh anything , rajver spice mix (must repost this adding that i got some more of their mix powder, so have add extra ground coriander to 2 1/2 parts from 1 )and technique. although i have been using butter ghee to cook the final dish after my last 2 visits in about a week to Mouchak. both vindaloos have been fantastic and i can tell they use butter ghee and the curries i have made ie chicken vindaloos and bombay aloo have been just like the ones from Mouchak although they don't use methi in the bombay aloo (just salt spice mix fine chopped onions base sauce and 1/4 of tomato and fresh coriander) oh and butter ghee.
regards
gary

hi jerry just a quick question, what are the ingredients for you karahi bhuna? ie pre cooked green peppers/onion oil content, spice mix tomato paste etc? and your method for cooking this dish as it maybe able to narrow down your search. another is your method for cooking the madras your nose is the key and your eyes secondary, rty to narrow down when the smoky aroma starts to appear. is it before or after the 1st ladle of base is added? how do you tell when it is right to add the base?

regards
gary