Excellent feedback from BB. This has to be my next cooking experiment.

Trouble is I made a double batch (about 5 litres) of SNS 2008 base. When I've got enough empty pots to store the new base I'll cook this one and let you know.

Oh - I meant to ask BB did you use the spiced oil for the madras recipe or just go with fresh oil?

Hi SS,

I have a persistant memory of a place when I was a student in Leeds around 1982.
The bhuna there was to die for - thick tasty sauce and loads of it.

I know what you mean about the typical bhuna recipes on this forum but would also suggest that a lot of other recipes are too similar compared to my memories of long ago BIR food.

Sometimes I wonder if my taste buds have changed in all these years. When I was eating curries 27 years ago it was quite a new taste for me and now it isn't.

On a positive note I can now cook a curry better than a ready meal or a bad BIR so there is some progress to be had - I may investigate the spiced/reclaimed oil ideas next.

Nobody said this would be easy.

Hi,

I'm certainly no doc but what I do know:

Too much sodium chloride (normal salt) is bad as it is related to carviovascular disease i.e. heart attacks and strokes. This is not normally related to type 2 diabetes. In the latter case too much refined sugar is the main culprit.

Experts say 6 grams of sodium choride (normal salt) is the daily recommended maximum for an adult. If you were very sweaty (for whatever reason, e.g. high temps or lots of excercise) you could probably take more.

To put 6 grams in perspective the average slice of bread (brown or white) contains half a gram so 12 slices a day would put you at the limit without eating anything else.

Another example, a tin of chunky chicken and veg soup from the supermarket contains about 2.2 to 2.4 grams of salt.

I'm quite confident my curries and dhals only contain about half of the salt the supermarkets put in their ready meals curries, and I usually eat pillau rice with my curries that has virtually no salt.

The lo-sodium salts use a sodium and potassium chloride mixture but potassium chloride has its own health risks and too much will stop your heart dead! It is in fact the 3rd drug administered in lethal injection executions so I'll stick to normal salt and just watch the quantities. 

Sorry UB I don't know - I'm sure they would post you one from Spain to UK.

That 3 flame jobbie says 28 Kw using natural gas - plenty hot enough for anything I guess. It does say for outside use, however.

Cheers,

PaulP

Hi UB,

This website lists burners up to 20 Kw:-

Click on domestic then the 3 flame rings:

http://www.optimgas.com/index_an.htm

Not sure why you would want this much heat though!

PaulP.

Hi MB,

It would be helpful if you could tell us what base and bhuna recipes you have used.
For example I have tried this base:

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=2757.0

with this bhuna recipe:

https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=1914.0

..and got pretty good results. If you do it right I don't think you will cook something bland. If anything my curries lately are getting overspiced probably because I am upto 1 tablespoon spice mix and then some chilli (and probably too much garlic!) for a largish single person curry. Probably 1 or 2 teaspoons is closer to what you need.

Mix powder, spice mix and even curry powder refer to the "curry powder" you will be using for your cooking. In the bhuna recipe above, for example, there is no specific spice mix, just corriander, cumin, chilli and dried methi. Other recipes may specify a certain spice mix or just list the ingredients used for that dish.

You will soon learn how much chilli to add through experience.

Give us a bit more info and I'm sure we can help more.

PaulP

That oil looks good CA. Are you planning to make a base with it, use it for final cooking or both?

From what I've read regarding garlic in oil it should be ok refrigerated for about 3 weeks or in a freezer for a few months. I don't know whether the oil would actually freeze solid or not.

Looking forward to your feedback on using this oil.

Hi Troy,

I found this:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070911234733AAswzJD

Since the base contains many things including garlic (usually) and oil I would be careful!

Maybe it can be done without preservatives but I don't know.

PaulP.

From what I've read the post above from adriandavidb is correct.

The relatively healthy poly-unsaturates can turn nasty when repeatedly heated. These oils include sunflower and canola (rapeseed) which are cheap and popular.

I'm no health freak being a smoker and drinker but I won't be adding to my bad habits by using ancient takeaway oil.

PaulP - off for a smoke now 

I usually do a rough 50:50 mix of tom puree and water. Recently I couldn't be bothered and used just the tom puree. I found it a little harder to mix around the pan and to get it to blend with the oil without the water. I'll probably continue to mix it with water for this reason and also because I've read this is what BIRs do.

I couldn't say it tasted different with or without the water to be honest.

PaulP.