Quote from: smokenspices on February 02, 2008, 04:00 PM
Welcome to the best curry site Beckylou
there's plenty to choose from, all just for you.

We'll all do our best to help you along
to make your curries go with a song.

There's Korma there's Pathia and hot Vindaloo
any questions you have, we are happy to view.

SnS ;D

You sure you haven't been into the wine already, SnS?? ;D  Nicely done, btw.

Quote from: smokenspices on February 02, 2008, 03:01 PM
Hi Ast

Used your Lamb Vindaloo recipe last weekend but without the Lamb and lamb stock (as I was using prawns). As far as I can recall, it was very hot and tasty, but to be honest we'd had a couple of bottles of wine (doing a bit of a Floyd, as you do when cooking) so I need to do it again when sober to make a better analysis.

As far as I can recall everything else was as per your recipe below (lamb bits omitted) and I also added a tsp of lemon juice.

[snip]

As I've now restocked the gravy freezer, I will be cooking your Vindaloo again this weekend (possibly without the wine!)

No worries, SnS.  Like I said, just wondering what you thought.  I wonder if there's any equivalent to get a bit of "prawn stock" going for a prawn one.  I thought that the addition of the lamb/chicken stock from the pre-cooking stage really made a difference to the final taste.  I need to do a side-by-side comparison at some stage to confirm, but that's my story, and I'm stickin' to it! ;D

Of course, the wine might've made all the difference in the world... ;D

Quote from: Secret Santa on February 02, 2008, 03:48 PM
I'd be prepared to wager that you could use any potato and it wouldn't make a blind bit of difference.

My guess it's the consistency of the potato that's the most important vs. the particular variety.  The French Exquisa (or whatever it was exactly) that I used seemed to match the texture profile for the Charlotte.  I wouldn't want to see the results of using a really floury potato--even in the quantities mentioned.  It would melt away to nothing and probably end up adding very little.

Cheers,

ast

Quote from: Bobby Bhuna on February 02, 2008, 11:44 AM
...some of my own freestyle curries...

You tryin to start a new sport there, Bobby?? ;D

Where's the 2008 Freestyle Curry Competition to be held?  I need to clear my schedule...

;D ;D

Hi beckylou,

Welcome to cr0!

You've come to the right place to do what you're after.  To me, there's really only 3 things it comes down to when trying to replicate restaurant curries:

1) A good base recipe (there's a few, but I can personally vouch for this one:  https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php/topic,2271.msg20262.html#msg20262, having made it recently)

2) Fresh spices from a proper Indian/Asian grocer

3) Technique, technique, technique!

To me, #3 is the most important aspect when making the final curries, and it is where I've noticed the biggest improvement/change in my own currying since joining this site.

Let us know how you get on, and, as CA says, "don't forget the pictures!"

Happy currying,

ast

Quote from: smokenspices on February 02, 2008, 12:35 AM
Just need your perfect Madras recipe to go with it.

BTW SnS, did you ever give my vindaloo recipe (or even the Jalfrezi) that I use with this base a shot?  If so, I'd be really interested to hear what you thought of it.  I still haven't gotten a chance to vary either the amounts or the composition of the spice mix yet.  I have tried it at both mild and madras strength though, and I thought it was still pretty good.

Bobby, are you still using Darth's madras recipe with it?  What's everyone else using?  Inquiring minds want to know! ;D

Cheers,

ast

Hi Eric,

Welcome to cr0, and don't be afraid to dive right in.  Like everyone else said, if you need help or have any questions, don't hesitate to give a shout.

Cheers,

ast

Hi Fandaz,

Welcome to the forum!

Like CA says, quick-n-easy is good too.  I'm sure you'll find loads to keep you busy on this site.  What I've found in doing things the "restaurant way" is that if you really do take a bit of time up front to prepare all you'll need in advance (including chopped onions, garlic and your favorite spice mix, and anything else in addition to the curry base and pre-cooked meat), I can make 3-4 different curries in about 30-45 min (from getting out the pans to food on the table).  It really makes a difference for us.  When it's just for me, it's about 20 min!

BTW, what kind of peppers do you grow?  I have a few different seeds, but I haven't managed to get around to actually planting them yet.

Looking forward to your contributions to the site.

Happy currying,

ast

Hi SnS,

Very nice post with the updated/revised instructions.  Good use of the photos to illustrate the procedures as well.

Many thanks for all the effort put in to make this as bulletproof as possible.  ;D

Cheers,

ast

I would imagine that you could get them easily at any professional catering supply place.  There's a place in Dublin I was in the other day and they had a very wide range of types--including aluminum stock pots and aluminum pans.  I don't remember how much they were, because that wasn't what I was looking for.

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I really still believe it's down to getting a consistent/improved technique with whatever equipment you're trying to use rather than aluminum vs. other types--unless you have something that doesn't heat evenly or isn't of decent-ish quality (and this means cooking quality vs. brand/price quality).

Hope this helps,

ast

Hi Mag,

Welcome to cr0!  I'm sure you'll notice a massive difference to your curries in fairly short order.  I got Khris Dhillon's book and thought I was doing reasonably well.  Then I found this site, and I realized how much better it could get.

Luckily, onions by the kilo aren't that expensive, but yes, you'll be needing a lot of them--and you might want to put in one of those industrial vegetable oil holding tanks in your back garden too! ;D

Good luck with your recipes!

Cheers,

ast