Quote from: emin-j on December 17, 2009, 05:03 PM

Quote from: Cory Ander on December 17, 2009, 01:34 PM

Quote from: adriandavidb on December 17, 2009, 09:45 AM
Having stated the above I still find that sometimes the results are amazing and sometimes only 'good' - Obviously the subtle variables make it seem like a bit of a 'dark art'.

Why do you think that might be ADB?

Excellent answer there CA we need to get down to the Nitty Gritty 
Perhaps we could start by listing what type of frying pan you use then what base recipe followed by which Curry recipe then which order you cook your Spices and at what temperature ? ........... Perhaps it might show up some interesting similarities.

For myself it's....
1. Aluminium frying pan sourced at Asian Supermarket
2. sNs base minus the Potatoes but some Coconut block added ( experimenting )
3. sNs Madras recipe plus a pinch of dried Fenugreek
4. Start on low - med heat ( gas hob )
5. Add 1/2 tbs of Butter Ghee to pan plus veg oil to just cover base of pan
6. Start with the pinch of Fenugreek leaves ( as per my bir kitchen visit )
7. Add 1tsp minced Garlic ( from jar ) add 1/2 tsp of minced Ginger ( from jar )
fry on medium heat prob 30 - 45 seconds until it starts to change colour , add 1 tbs Tomato Puree from tube ( bought at Tesco's ) stir in , Tomato Puree does not mix in well with the oil ,
after about 30-45 seconds add 1/2 tsp of each of ground Coriander / Cumin /Turmeric / plus 1 -2 tsp of Chili powder , still with heat on medium stir in Spices in quick motion or they will burn !
after approx 30 seconds we have the ' Toffee ' smell , then add first ladle of preheated base and this will sizzle violently , raise heat slightly to keep mixture bubbling , add pre cooked Chicken previously marinated in Garlic / Ginger / Tom Puree / Turmeric / Veg Oil , add 2 more ladles of base gradually increasing heat to keep the mix bubbling , add a good pinch of chopped Coriander stalks , add a good pinch of Garam Masala a squirt of Lemon dressing and about 1 tsp of Salt stir in and taste , add more Salt if necessary ,fry mixture for a couple of Min's more adjust thickness of Curry with pre boiled water if needed , serve and garnish with Coriander leaf.

Hi SS, it was from emin-j's post on page one of this thread

a squirt of Lemon dressing [/quote]

I have used many things to sour hot curries, lemon juice; lime juice; various vinigars, and more recently tinned tomarto juice or some of the 'blitzed' contents of tinned toms, added late in the cooking.  The latter works best for me.  However one of my local BIR's madras (not a fantastic BIR, but perfectly OK), had a flavour that I recognised but for ages I couldn't 'place'   After weeks of wraking my brains I finaly realized it was sweet lemon dressing: that discusting overly sweet sh*t you get on pancakes at fairgrounds and craft fairs and the like.  It tastes vile on these because it's designed both to sweeten AND add a lemon flavour, and for some reason the vendors of these pancakes find it necessary to use loads of sugar AND this sauce, rather than using sugar and lemon juice which would be just great thanks!

Anyway, the point of the above diatribe, apart from slating pancake vendors, was to suggest that this rather sickly stuff does work RATHER well in a madras, providing other forms of sweetner (tom puree for example), are reduced.

My local BIR uses it with good rresults; I was interested to see it's use suggested here, because I've been meaning to try it for ages!

-If using garlic, fry 'till slightly coloured (pale yellow).
-Fry spices in hot oil for at least 30 seconds with little, if any, liquid present - I believe the excess of oil is required to draw the flavour out of the spices.
-Fry in dry methi leaf at the begining with the spices.
-After spice-frying, add a couple of tbs of base and reduce down till nearly all of the water is gone, the subsequent additins of base do not need to be reduced as far, I believe the caramelized sugars released by the onions whilst doing this contribute to the BIR 'smokey' toffee taste.

Having stated the above I still find that sometimes the results are amazing and sometimes only 'good' - Obviously the subtle variables make it seem like a bit of a 'dark art'.

Quote from: plugsy on December 14, 2009, 06:35 PM
Hi chaps,
Did you know that one of my favourite curries of all time is a (Begum Bahar)from my local BIR,
it is a chicken dish with ground mince lamb in the sauce, it also has aubergines and a medium heat..--- Does anyone have a recipe like this so i can try it for myself at home, if not something like..Many thanks in advance..Plugsy

That wouldn't be a 'Lal Akash' would it??

CA, I want to give this a try!  I assume your measures are LEVEL measuring spoons, i.e tps=5ml, tbs=15ml?

Quote from: currymonster on November 23, 2009, 02:23 PM

Quote from: Unclebuck on November 23, 2009, 02:13 PM

Vin - vinegar or red wine vinegar
aloo - potato [Hindi]
originally Portuguese dish with pork now transformed into a curry mostly chicken/lamb

I have read that it could be a mistake in translation from Portuguese to Hindi because Garlic in Portuguese is alho, therefore the traditional dish is Vinegar & Garlic when translated properly.

I heard that too!

Where do you get it?  I immagine somewhere like on eof the Wing-Yip Chinese supermarkets

Quote from: Cory Ander on September 22, 2009, 04:03 PM

• 1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (crushed/rubbed using fingers)

[

Hi CA

Just a small point:  the tbs of fenugreek leaf, is it 'crushed/rubbed between fingers' before or after measuring-out.

This may seem a slightly inconsequential question, but crushing will decrease the surface area by quite a lot potentially: there could be quite a difference in quantity between 1 x tbs fenugreek leaf, subsequently crushed; and 1 x tbs of previousy crushed fenugreek leaf.

Your recipe is clearly written and would suggest theat the leaf is measured first and crushed after; just want to be certain!

Many thanks!

Quote from: Spice-as-Nice on November 17, 2009, 10:39 PM

Quote from: George on May 09, 2008, 04:42 PM
Mehernosh Mody, of London restaurant La Porte des Indes, demonstrates how to make Chicken Vindaloo:

http://www.tiscali.co.uk/broadband/vhub/index.html?channel=lifestyle&id=5329

I clicked the link but it shows .... " How to carve a Turkey " . Tried it several times at different times but thats what it shows.  Maybe the links bad ? Having said that , I tried using Turkey in a Curry a few times ... it was rubbish. Gobble Gobble .. Not !

Me too, tried several times!  I already KNOW how to carve a turkey!

[quote author=JerryM link=topic=3772.msg35673#msg35673 date=1258356271
i think/believe it is the main ingredient in the BIR's that i don't like. for example i've tried curry in Bradford (3 times in think) and expected it to be real good - i just did not like it. the same has put me off going to rusholme (it's not in all restaurants there but i feel most).
[/quote]

I grind my dried methi into a fine green powder (a la Chris Dillon), and use a lev  qtr tps (measuring spoon), per 450ml of base in my madras.  Contrary to what some think is best, I fry-it-in with the spice mix right at the begining.   have you dried doing that way Jerry?  Added near the end it can be bitter.

I agree with SS, whilst not the full answer, it gets me nearer BIR than any other individual thing.

regards