ivangough,

i do feel your chef is really top notch.

i can't believe he discards the onion liquid - the sauce will be very thick. i also found due to the length of cooking i had to top up with water.

totally agree on the importance of the cooking time.

for this recipe i left the whole spices whole ie i did not grind (hope this was right).  i don't buy new packet each time - i always grind as i need. the only time i roast whole spices is to make garam masala. rest of the time i just grind without roasting.

probably won't get to make curry till tuesday but will keep u posted. i make what i call my std madras sauce and to date i find whichever base i use there's not much difference in the final curry (assuming the base passes a given threshold) - the frying technique and spice mix having a greater effect at the frying stage.

this base is much sweeter though and i expect it to give me that little extra bit of sweetness that i've been missing c/w BIR. i think it is down to the length of cooking of the onions more than the technique which i intend to confirm by adopting the cooking time for my next batch of base that i've made before (rajver, saffron, ifindforu).

ps both bases taste even better today (the as spec and the as spec+coriander)

joshallen2k,

i use the evap milk in CK's CTM and feel it makes the difference. i think the make of tandoori masala is also crucial.  feel there are 2 types on the market - one ideal for tikka (eg rajah - dark red colour, also v.good for dry rub & bbq) and one ideal for CTM (eg Leena - pinker red colour).

on the korma i found ronnoc's spot on (i think i went 50:50 ground almond: creamed coconut).

Tamala,

your comment is well timed for me. i do get the raging thirst from the BIR's. i had put this down to v.high salt (having eliminated alcohol). have just tried ivangough's AIR (spot on) but noticed that the salt is v.high (for me but works very well to improve the taste of the onion) and was starting to draw conclusion that to get closer to BIR taste i would have to increase the salt.

can salt not be an equal cause or is there a big difference "thirst" between salt and msg

Tamala,

would appreciate your thoughts on whether vegetable ghee is effectively hydrogenated oil and therefore has a much higher saturated fat level than veg oil.

ps have adopted your suggestions on naan bread - many thanks

sorry forgot the pics

1) spices (top left - coriander, top right cardamom)
2) onion finished cooking
3) finished sauce

this base has taken me by surprise. it's got to be a 10/10 (albeit i need to cook with it to confirm).

i did not follow the spec exactly. changes being:
1) no green chillies (i like to add chilli at cooking stage)
2) 4 english tsp of salt (c/w 6 etsp) - thought this to be enough would even go 3 tsp next time
3) 3 english tsp turmeric (c/w 6 etsp)
4) did not add white pepper
5) i'm not sure if/when the sieved liquid should be added back in - i added at recipe step 4.
6) did not get to add the cashews but i expect this to be a good addition
7) added 200ml of oil (c/w 700ml)

i found step 2 & 3 a bit of a phaff. i'm not sure the sieving is crucial and found the frying of the onion puree a real splatter (hence ended up adding back the liquid as i could not live with the splattering - frying the puree was like an exploding volcano)

i was really sceptical about the cardamom but found the base lacking after adding the rest of the spices so added it in as per spec and found it spot on.

i was amazed at the final result given no carrot or green pepper.

i'm not sure i got the onions brown enough at stage 5 despite cooking for 2 hrs longer than spec. there was a definite improvement in sweetness from the longer cooking time (banked for use in my norm bases).

the high level of salt made me v.nervous but in retrospect i think it works somehow with the onions to increase the overall sweetness (i know this sounds v.strange)

i found i had to remove the solids at the end to enable a further puree (i found it difficult to get a very smooth puree at stage 2 due to the lack of liquid)

i've separated off enough for 1 portion of the "as spec" curry (around 300 ml) and then added coriander (9 etsp) to the remainder. i was surprised that i could not decide which i liked best - will need to make a madras sauce to test both bases for sure.

overall this base is slightly different (the casia, cinnamon and cardamom work very well together). i feel i got a much sweeter base with this technique than previously (i'm not sure if this is down to technique or length of onion cooking).

it's certainly passes the threshold and i'm well impressed  ;D ;D ;D

ivangough,

does the sieved onion water go back in at all. i think i will add it back at step 5.

interesting thought butter more healthier than veg product. will check labels. the veg ghee says no cholesterol but i too am always on the look out to avoid hydrogenated veg oil.

no rice bran oil in asda so will move onto sainsburys

QuoteOne thing I think is missing from curry recipies I have tried so far is an overall "Tomato" flavour quite predominant in some of my local TA dishes

i feel i've overcome this same problem by increasing the amount of tom puree at the frying stage - i now use 2 tbsp per person (200ml finished).

i agree on the MSG ie for chinese only.

QuoteAnyone here want to recommend me the best base/Tikka Masala recipe?

for this combination for me has got to be rajver base and curry king CTM with CA's tikka

ivangough,

am sure friends will be well impressed. my family rate better than BIR (i'm more madras but do agree it's pretty good, i use evaporated milk instead of cream feeling closer to BIR)

thanks for thoughts on coriander - i think i will try the cardamom (a bit at a time as i do like it) to see how well it works. i will add the coriander though as i think this BIR essential. i am very tempted to add anise but will try to leave out this time.