Derek Dhansak mentioned in another thread he was making a curry in his slow cooker, which got me wondering if there might be some tasty slow cooker curry recipes out there?  It's hardly BIR, but there's a lot of appeal in being able to throw all the ingredients in a slow cooker before you leave for work then have a tasty curry ready as soon as you step through the door ten hours later.  Lamb would seem especially suited to slow cooking as it will tenderise nicely.

Quote from: madmatt on October 20, 2011, 08:51 AM
Hi All,

I use Procook Kives, and have this 9 piece set here:-

http://www.procook.co.uk/shop/Knives/Knife-Sets/ProCook-Elite-Steel-Knife-Set-%26-Block/d35/sd264?code=S219

Its the 2nd set ive had from them, the first being the rubber coated handle ones I had for 2 years, but the handles gave up(dishwasher use)so wrote a stinky letter and sent them back, to recieve a larger brand new set of elite knives for free, so was quite happy with that.

Pro cook is a brand I would avoid at all costs, having made the mistake of buying one of their "professional steel frying pans" which has all the heat conducting properties of an asbestos mat. It's the only frying pan I've ever used which can be left on the hob at full heat  indefinately and still not reach a good frying temperature at the pan's surface.  How that is possible I do not know, but certainly the special thick base which is the selling point of the pan is made of some inferior metal that is terrible at conducting heat.

My impression of their brand is that it is awful quality cookware described in dishonest terms to make it look like professional equipment which has been discounted.

Quote from: PaulP on October 19, 2011, 09:41 PM

I could be completely wrong however.  Any other ideas for the sweet tangy taste I'm looking for?

This could be the conversion of some of the onion compounds into natural sugars through the high heat lapping up the side of the BIR's pan and effectively reducing and frying a small amount of the base sauce at a higher temp than the rest of the sauce gets as it bubbles away in the centre of the pan. A few months ago I was experimenting with recreating this at home by frying 1 or 2 ladles of base sauce in a separate pan until it reduces to a stage where it is a thick paste and sizzling in the oil rather than bubbling and boiling. At a certain stage the colour starts to darken and if tasted you will find a rich, sweet almost caramel flavour which is very moreish and delicious. Combine this paste back into your curry towards the end of the cooking and the effect on overall flavour is amazing.

The downside is the length of time is takes to carry out the whole procedure, but for me cooking on an electric hob at home it's the closest I can get to the gas fired BIR flavour.

I contacted New Covent Garden Soup Company to find out where I could buy the Indian Summer soup Martin discovered, here's the reply 


Good morning

Thank you for your email with regards to our Indian Summer soup.

This soup was only available during the month of September, it was our Soup of the Month, so will not available again, sorry.

Kind regards

Lynne Dickson
Customer Relations
New Covent Garden Soup Company

I use Rajah chilli powder which someone here put me onto as an extra hot chilli powder. Whoever recommended it said they had to bin theirs because it was too hot, but thats exactly what i was looking for.  We all have different levels of sensitivity to capsaicin I suppose and I seem to have dulled mine with too many hot curries, so I use a TBS of the Rajah powder in most curries.

Doubt you'll find a single standard powder, people probably settle on a favourite based on availability and their preferred heat.

I was interested to read the statement "never thaw meat at room temperature on the kitchen counter" on this page http://www.irishbeef.co.uk/top-tips/

Not sure what to make of that. The immediate question is - why not?  I've always thawed frozen meat in this way!

Ps their recipes section is worth a look

Quote from: currymonster on September 29, 2011, 08:32 PM
I haven't tried this yet but the commenters seem to approve

http://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/video-How-to-Peel-a-Head-of-Garlic-in-Less-Than-10-Seconds

What en excellent tip, very good timesaver. Will try it asap!

I'd also like to be a part of this, reckon there's room at the back for me Chris? I could do either date.

Having met Az at the BBQ I know he'll impart plenty of info with enthusiasm and hold back no secrets.

Great post 976bar, think a lot of people will get something from reading that 

Quote from: solarsplace on August 08, 2011, 08:57 PM

Good to meet you Az, natterjak & 976bar

Quote from: solarsplace on August 08, 2011, 08:57 PM


Also some of my own garlic chilli & vindaloo sauces. Which people seemed to like. Although it turns out that my vindaloo is actually a spot on madras rather than a vindaloo in other peoples opinions 

If it's any help, I thought your vindaloo was somewhere between a madras and vindaloo in heat and in flavour was great.  Whether a vindaloo should have lemon added - I'll leave that to others!

Quote from: solarsplace on August 08, 2011, 08:57 PM


He personally avoids Rajah spices due to excessive cost. Favouring TRS & East End as equally high quality but better value for money.

To expand on this I think Az mentioned that it was also due to Rajah not selling in large catering sized packs.

Quote from: solarsplace on August 08, 2011, 08:57 PM
Anyway, goes to show, that there were no issues - as expected, no violations of privacy or confrontation - just a civilised and very enjoyable afternoon. Hopefully we can do this again with more members attending next time

Everyone was good as gold.  Didn't expect anything else of course but yourself, Chris, 976Bar, Az and all the various wives, partners, friends and kids were great company and I'm very happy I made the effort to attend.  The only mystery was why the takeup wasn't greater.