Help! How to make a curry?

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Bit of a long shot but just a bit desperate here! Does anyone have any tips, secrets, advice or recipes on how to make a curry??

I’ve tried making kormas and other similar Currys in the past using various recipes I’ve seen online and they never seem to work out- tbh everything I make all ends up just tasting the exact same and really not great. I’m hoping to make a curry tomorrow- ideally something like a butter chicken, or a korma or other coconut based curry. Does anyone have any good recipes they use or advice?? Thanks in advance!

My dad makes a stunning curry, he take a lot of time to make it, slow cooking the meat into it so it is super super tender and falling apart.
He swears that that’s the difference between a nice curry and a great curry is frying the spices in a dry pan before anything else. He said if you don’t do that then your curry will never taste as good.

I find tomato based curries cooked with chicken thighs the best! Add your curry powder/paste to your onions and cook out for as long as you can. Leave it simmering as long as you can for the chicken. Plus nice tinned tomatoes.

It's Bumbi you want:

There are some good recipes online but to make a good curry, cook it slowly. Like really cook the onions well on a medium to low heat. If you're adding tomatoes, do the same.

Choose your protein & vegetables of choice, saute, add half a jar of greetas mango chutney, stir through for a min or two, add double cream or coconut milk, warm through, serve with rice and the other half of the mango chutney with popadoms.

If you are on Facebook the curry guy has some fantastic recipes

To make a good authentic curry from scratch, you need to be taught by your Indian mum IMO.
However I have a ‘cheat’ recipe that has worked very well for years.
Feeds 4 people
2 x diced medium onions
8 x pieces of garlic sliced
1 x green chilli sliced
Chicken or Quorn mince
Patak’s Korma Paste (Not Sauce)
Method
1. Fry the onions on a low heat in a little oil until softened. Do not burn as you don’t want that hotdog taste.
2. Add the garlic and chilli on a low heat and cook until the onions are soft.
3. Add 1/3 of a jar of Korma paste and stir.
4. Add the chicken/Quorn mince.
5. Cook on a medium heat until the chicken/Qorn is thoroughly cooked.
6. Check the taste and add a small amount of salt to taste if required.
The Korma paste gives an authentic taste with a slight coconut twist. The chilli adds heat and depth.
Enjoy with a cold beer or a chilled bottle of Alsace Gewurztraminer!

PS If you don't want to cook rice with it and chapatis are too challenging, white pitta bread dampened under the tap and then cooked for around 3 minutes in the toaster also work well.

https://meerasodha.com/recipes/what-my-mother-taught-me/

This is fairly failsafe. Key things - fry the spices first and use on the bone meat. I prefer thighs rather than drumsticks.

Or look in the frozen section of your supermarket and buy frozen parathas. Delicious, cook from frozen in a dry frying pan, no oil.

If a curry feels too hard then start with a simple daal recipe. Google the George alaghiah family daal recipe, it is the easiest thing to cook and will get you into using fresh ingredients rather than a jar.

I make the curry from Nigella's Express. It's so easy and the best! Serve with rice and poppadums.

Get hold of literally any Madhur Jaffrey book, choose what you fancy and knock yourself out. She’s never failed me.

Use individual spices/ingredients rather than pastes/sauces.

Don't use curry powder.

Garam masala is the exception as ready mix.

Recipie tin eats butter chicken is fantastic

Nisha katona’s recipes from Thos mornjng are amazing. We’ve tried and loved them all https://www.itv.com/thismorning/tags/nishakatona

I always use Pataks paste. There are different options but I use the chicken tikka masalla. It a winner in this house.

As someone who's culture is at stake here let me tell you two things..

1. Quality of spices is everything - and make your own garam masala
2. You need to put time and love into a good curry

My DS2 makes fantastic curry’s, absolutely awesome Korma, I am up, thanks bloody menopause. He is asleep, but I will post link later to the recipe he uses. You will need a good spice shop, we have spent a lot of money on spices, but been totally worth it. His curry is just a good as a takeaway, he makes the base gravy, poaches the chicken etc. the chicken is so soft and tender.

Bookmarking!

We can't have dairy but love a thick creamy curry so I've found using coconut cream and adding ground almonds always makes it lovely. If not horrendously calorific!

Sorry not sure how to follow without posting.
=)
Punjabi chicken recipes are good and easy to follow. One of my favourites

I love Meera Sodha's recipes. There are three recipes I enjoy
Cauliflower korma - The roasted cauliflower takes on a really delicious texture in the curry, and I've borrowed this technique for other recipes
Paneer butter masala - This one is rich and delicious. I'm sure you could substitute the paneer for chicken if that's your preference
Cauliflower, cashew, pea and coconut curry - Simple to make and feels like comfort food. I usually roast the cauliflower in advance as I prefer the texture that way.

I find recipes using a base sauce are the best. You can portion and freeze the sauce so its a bit of work but lasts a while. I also buy the frozen garlic and ginger cubes to save time. The curry guy has some decent recipes.

I’m a Madhur Jaffrey fan too.

If you want korma this pdf has the recipe from a popular chain of Indian restaurant. I've not tried the korma but other recipes are good and as close to restaurant curries as any other I have tried.

https://www.scribd.com/doc/200662620/The-Ashoka-Cookbook-by-Sanjay-Majhu

And a general tip - if you don't use chicken on the bone for curries, a stock cube can add a bit of depth. Also far more oil and salt than you'd think necessary.