Not a problem and thanks for the questions. I don't really have a lot of experience. I've started cooking this type of food back in November and can't say I've gotten all the technique down or repeated the processes enough times to feel confident. The only dish where I can generally reliably obtain similar results is korma, but I'll try to answer your questions one by one
Quote from: spiceyokooko on February 09, 2013, 10:43 PM
- I thought your addition of different ingredients was quite curious and I didn't really understand the logic behind them. Why did the methi leaves go in first, then the spice mix and salt and then the chilli powder? I'd have cooked out the spice mix, salt and chilli powder right after the g/g paste was ready. Then the methi leaves later.
Maybe I'm misunderstood, but I thought the methi would generally be added before the tomato puree, spice mix and salt and that may be just confusion. On the first dish (the one that flew) I did happen to add methi after the spice mix, but that was because I forgot to add earlier...then again.. I didn't get to try that one.
Quote from: spiceyokooko on February 09, 2013, 10:43 PM
- I didn't see much oil separation take place at any stage and why was the 3 ladles of base introduced at 3 different stages? I tend to add and reduce base all in one stage.
Interesting question with regards to the oil separation. I think you are right, but that has been something that only occasionally I have managed to do and I don't really know what causes it. I presume this is also lack of technique, so if you could elaborate more on that, I would appreciate to try it on my next attempt.
I tend to add a laddle every time the existing sauce starts to thicken up, or simply because I happened to think the ingredients had cooked enough and I want more sauce, but perhaps I'm being naive in doing so. Again, I would like to hear more thoughts on this
Quote from: spiceyokooko on February 09, 2013, 10:43 PM
- Why the two separate additions of chopped coriander? I tend to add this right at the end once it's finished cooking and off the heat.
From experience it appears that if you add coriander early on, the flavour will infuse better than at the end, however, as coriander can be overpowering if too much, I add another bit at the end which hopefully won't cook long enough to overpower the dish but still be present.
Quote from: spiceyokooko on February 09, 2013, 10:43 PM
- I also felt each stage was too short, I'd have cooked things for longer and at a higher heat. I'd question whether the spices were cooked out correctly.
By spices,do you mean the birds eye chillies which I added very close to the end?
If so, I agree. I got carried away and didn't manage to get the chillies cooked properly. This was indeed a big lapse !
Thanks a lot for questioning the things I did and why I did them!
