Thanks to the fantastic generosity of Michael.T (https://curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=7896.0) I at last have my hands on some of the coveted commercial Rajah Premium Madras powder, so thought I'd do a side by side comparison to see how it stacks up against its domestic market counterpart, Rajah Mild Madras powder.

In the picture below the Rajah Premium is on the right:



As you can see, the Rajah Premium is a little darker and not so yellow as the standard powder, which could indicate less turmeric and/or a little more cumin or other darker spices in the mix.

Taste wise there's definitely a difference.

The Rajah Premium has a less harsh, more rounded, balanced and 'sweeter' taste. In fact I found it quite moreish, and went in for a fair few finger dabs.

Heat levels are identical.

It's not life changing, nor is it going to magically transform your dishes and take them to a new stratospheric level, but given the choice the Rajah Premium is the one I'd go for every time.

 

QuoteALWAYS remember you get what you pay for

That statement was never meant to be taken literally, not by the seller anyway

Quote from: Salvador Dhali on March 07, 2012, 11:46 AM
[edit: This should read 'Raja Premium' Madras powder, not Rajah Gold.

If your're saying the thread title is wrong, would you like me to try and change it? i.e if you're over time-out to modify it yourself.



POST CHECKLIST:
Could this post be construed as negative? - yes - pass
Is it potentially helpful? - yes - pass

I've never seen the Rajah Gold stuff; but I can attest to the difference between Rajah Mild Madras Curry powder sold in small tins to that sold in slightly larger bags.  The stuff in the bags is missing many of the ingredients found in the tinned variety: fennel seed comes to mind, but also a fair few others.  In fact the bagged stuff was your bog-standard turmeric/cumin/corriander etc type mix.

Like others on here, when I make up by own mix, using the usual suspects; I oftern add a small quantity of commerical stuff, to effectively increse the variety of ingredients in it.  There was no point whatever in used the baggged stuff because alll I was achieving was adding spices I'd already included!

BTW, 'my' mix is a slightly altered 'Bruce Edwards' type powder: 2 parts turmeric; 2 parts corriander; 1 part cumin; 1 part Kashmiri Mirch and 1 part Rajah Mild Madras tinned curry powder. Other stuff: mace/cinnamon/pepper corns/cardamon (black or/& green) gets fried-in at the beginning, and if I'm using star anise, one or two 'blades' of the star in at the simmer stage.