I appreciate you posting this Martin and I'd like to try something different myself.
So I'd be happy to see a fool-proof version of this Glasgow base sauce recipe.

Cheers,

Paul

You're right Mick, they don't like to blend but a good example of a stable emulsion of water and oil is milk. One of the labels associated with milk is "homogenised".

The milk is forced through very fine filters that cause the fat globules to become extremely small and this is enough, in the case of milk, to create a stable emulsion.

But regarding base sauces, it doesn't really matter whether the oil separates unless you intend to skim some off for other uses. For the home cook freezing batches of base the separation is almost a nuisance as you will want to give it a good stir before dividing into smaller containers.

Paul

I don't think the ones I bought from Sainsburys were Spanish.
To some degree you can tell from the shape as sweet onions tend to have a shape like a flattened tennis ball whereas the "strong" onions are closer to round.

In any case I hate paying

I've tried using sweet Dutch onions and also the typical brown onions sold by Sainsburys which are quite strong. I don't recall much difference to the finished base or curries.

Probably the best bet to recreate BIR would be to buy a cheap sack of brown onions from an Asian cash'n'carry as that's what the BIRs would do.

Paul

@ George, you censored out my minor expletives cr4ck and 4rse when you left CAs much worse ones virtually intact!

What credentials do people have anyway regarding their scientific understanding and knowledge? I have 3 solid grade A levels in biology, chemistry and physics and was originally (in 1979) doing a dentistry degree at Sheffield Uni. I left after 1 term as I'm far too squeamish to be a dentist and did an IT course instead.

It doesn't help me to create decent curries though!

The separation of oil in the base question? When you blend your base you create an emulsion due to the shearing action of the blender blades which makes the oil break up into small particles. An emulsion can be stable or not. Eventually many people see their emulsion break down and the oil surfaces. It doesn't mean anything except your emulsion was unstable. It doesn't mean that the base is cooked. Read the Wikipedia articles on emulsions and colloids if you can understand them. People have observed that adding coconut block makes it harder for the oil to separate. Yes that can make the emulsion more stable, and it may not be what you want.

The separation of the oil at the frying time, (so often described in Indian cooking books) and normally when a fry pan mixture contains tomatoes is due to water evaporating from the pan mixture. The evaporation of water prevents the oil from getting too hot but there comes a point when most of the water has gone and at this point the oil will start to get hotter than 100 degrees and you are entering a possible burn scenario. Most cookbooks will direct you to the next cooking stage at this point. It's not rocket science is it?

So what scientific credentials does SpicyTroll possess? A search of "coagulated lipoproteins"  as he recommended points to glib statements on sites like Chowhound talking about the grey scum produced from boiling mixtures containing meat (i.e. lots of protein) compared with a vegetable base sauce mixture containing very little protein.

SpicyTroll show me a reference to a scientific paper where the scum of a vegetable base sauce like mixture has been analysed. Unless you can do that you are talking out of your (moderated).

Some lipoproteins are toxic so maybe Chewytikka is right and they may be considered "impurities".

Science my (moderated) and I'm surprised at members of this forum for not recognising a troll at 10 paces.

Paul

I don't know the reason for sure but I've seen loads of BIR chefs doing the double fresh coriander thing where they add some early on, and then add a final garnish to the finished dish.

Nice one CA and W. 

Great to see Mick is making a success of things.

Paul

The vinegar taste mentioned is almost certainly the vinegar from Pataks balti paste.

I've had balti curries that tasted like that but my local TA does a nice balti curry.

Paul

Another vote for tandoori lamb chops. They are usually delicious!