Why oh why is my curry always so shit?

[worriermum]

It doesn't matter if it's chicken, beef or lamb...my curries are always thin and acrid, can taste the separate spices - never a delicious blend of spicy flavours. I have all the whole, authentic spices and even blended my own garam masala FFS. I have THREE Madhur Jaffrey cookbooks and follow the recipes religiously. But am still Queen of Crap Curry. I always go for tomato-based curries, and try to avoid cream or coconut: is this my problem? Please, all you Indian cookery experts, share your advice and tips.
ps but my chick pea curry - and only my chick pea curry - is deeevine, if I say so myself

making your own garam masala is where you are going wrong. When you blend your own it remains grainy and as soon as it touches liquid it expands no matter how long you cook it for. The key to a good curry is to remember less is more. Don't be fooled by these Tv chefs who use a myriad of spices. Go to your local indian shop buy turmeric powder jeera powder hot madras curry powder chillie powder. That's all you need to begin with. The main property of any curry is onions and the onions have to dissolve to create a paste. The simplest way to break down the onions is salt a little water and keep the lid on. to help them further use a potato masher. the onions create the thickness of your sauce you can use a few tomatoes chopped with the onions the water from the tomatoes help dissolve the onions. once you have a paste you add your spices. keep the heat low and the lid on. you'll know the spices are cooked whenyou see oil rising around the edges of the pan another trick is use a wooden spoon stir it and run your finger over the back of the spoon if there are grains you will feel it. another important tip is always finish your curry on a high heat with the lid on. then take it off the heat and keep the lid on for ten mins this helps the meat relax and take in the juices and allows the oils to settle on top

Curry and chips anyone?

It is hard to give a definitive curry recipe as each family has its own way of making them and then there are so many regional variations too. The creamy curries tend to be from northern (more cold) regions of India. My family is from a part of India that does not normally have creamy curries but it is predominantly vegetarian so my advice is based on this.

If any of you watched come dine with me this week and heard Paz talk about making a curry - well, that is how I was taught too. Heat some oil in a pan add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, aesofetida and curry leaves - put a lid of the pan as the mustard seeds will pop as they heat - this should be on a medium heat. Add onions and cook until softened - again with the lid on as this prevents the onions burning but remember to stir. with vegetarian curries, we tend to add the veg and then the tomatoes at the same time then add any other spices - normally this is a quarter teaspoon on turmeric, chilli powder, ground cumin, ground coriander seeds and salt. In any even, add tomatoes or passata after the onions have softened as adding tomatoes before the onions are softened dramatically slows them softening.

Some of the spices such as the aesofetida and turmeric are to aid digestion so, i would never omit them even though they don't add much to the overall flavour.

If I had to teach someone to cook a curry, I would start with a quick potato curry. Peel and chop a couple of large waxy potatoes (desiree) into 'chips' and dice an onion which is optional. Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a pan, add a teaspoon on mustard seeds and a teaspoon of cumin seeds and a generous pinch of aesofetida - after the mustard seeds have popped, add the onions, if using, and potatoes and stir to coat the onions and potatoes with oil, add, salt, fresh green chilli and ginger to taste and a quarter teaspoon of turmeric, put the lid on and leave to cook on a lowish heat. once potatoes and onions are cooked through, taste and adjust seasonong if necessary and serve sprinkled with chopped fresh coriander.

Another verion of the potato curry would be to cut the potatoes into larger pieces say one inch cubes, add tomato passata after the onions have been softened and add a half a cup of water and simmer. For this version, you don't need waxy potatoes as floury ones help thicken the 'sauce'.

Thanks for the advice sis.do you have any advice for a medium curry?

Sorry that should be a meat curry, medium heat/ spice.

Sorry, we are vegetarian so I have no idea about meat curries at all.

Jamie Oliver's Naked Chef curry recipe - Pete's lamb curry or some such name - is the only curry we have ever made that tastes like proper curry. Fantastic. We've had it veggie, chiken and lamb. Always fab. Don't be put off by the amount of garlic. Really - do try it. Delicious. Usually I find recipes thin tasting but this has depth and flavour like a proper curry

I like vegetarian food. sis do you have a mixed veg curry you could share please?

Recipe

Anybody else then?

I cheat and make my curries up. I fry onions with a madras spice mix and chuck in some extra bits if I have them. tumeric, cumin etc.

Brown the meat in the spices, chuck in veg too...chopped tomatoes and then simmer. I like the texture thats made if you put some potatoes in (even left over ones diced) or a can of chickpeas, and mush some of them up...

Tastes ok!

Thanks but I'm not looking for cheat recipe

Sorry Mummy2Bookie, I forgot to come back to this thread. For a general mixed veg curry, I would temper the oil (ie heat oil with mustard seeds, cumin seeds, aesofetida, a couple of curry leaves and fresh green chilli without any seeds until the mustard seeds pop). Add chopped onion until, turn down heat and cover pan until onions are softened then add the veg with those that need longest cooking time first or cheat and use some frozen mixed veg but use the mixed veg packs that have veg pieces about 1-1.5 inches long. Add pinch of turmeric, chilli powder, ground cumin, ground coriander and salt to taste. Add tomato passata with a teaspn of sugar heat through and serve.

For a creamier version, add less tomato passata and no sugar and stir in some creme fraiche before gently heating through and serving.

You can also add defrosted peas and carrots to either version of of the potato curry in my earlier post.

If you want my versions of any curries using particular veg, let me know. If I don't reply, it means I've forgotten to come back to the thread so feel free to send me a PM. But please note that I am only giving my versions - there is no definitive curry recipe - so you should tweak the recipes as you see fit.

Thanks sis. Ummm I suppose cauliflower curry would be a nice one to have. As it's one veg we all like at my house.

sorry, haven't read all the thread, the link below is fab, we have made some fab things from here

www.cr0.co.uk/curry/

Okay, here goes with how my mum cooks cauliflower curry (I'm not a huge fan od cauliflower so tend not to cook with it but I do like it when my mum cooks it!):

Ingredients:
1 small/mediun califlower cut into florets
5 tablespoons of oil
1/2 teaspoon of mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon of aesofetida
three or four curry leaves (optional)
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

Heat oil, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves if using and aesofetida and cover pan until mustard seeds pop. Ad cauli florets and the remaining spices to taste and keep on medium-low heat until the cauli is cooked through. Serve.

The above recipe will give a fairly dry curry but is my preferred version. For a curry with more of a 'sauce', you can add 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric, replace the black pepper with chilli powder and add tomato passata and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Both versions taste good with peas added to the curry (they can be added at the sametime as the cauliflower assuming you are using frozen peas).

Dont know if this has been suggested as havent got time to go through all the thread, but the curry club books are good. I think part of the secret is to puree the cooked onions. That gives you the lovely silky texture and sweetness. The website is here

tamarind can round out a disappointing curr.

curry. not curr.

I think dp has some of the curry club books. Two I think.I have looked at themin the past, they look bit complicated IMHO

Thank you sis I shall try it later this week and report back. We have all the ingredients. Luckily we have.a very big spice and spice mix collection here.

Actually sis have you ever made a curry with tofu? I have some that I really need to use up.

Have just made sis's potato curry (plus the passata and water). Ooo it was lovely. Thank you.

- Thanks follyfoot, I feel very proud even though it is what my mum taught me, so credit is hers, not mine!

Sorry Mummy2Bookie, missed your question in my excitement. I have never made a tofu curry - I have only used it in stir fry.

If you are feeling adventurous, you could try replacing the paneer with tofu in chilli paneer. I don't fry the paneer as it has a high fat content:

1 pack of paneer - diced into 1cm pieces
Light soy sauce - about 6 tablespoons
3-4 tablespoons of sweet chilli sauce,
Fresh coriander, fresh ginger and fresh chillis ground to a paste - to taste
1.5 teaspoons of ground coriander seeds and cumin seeds
Tomato Passata
chilli powder
teaspoon of sugar
vegetable that you have available - I usually use peppers and carrots cut into batons and sweetcorn.

rather than fry the paneer, stir-fry the paneer in a wok ( I don't use any oil - just keep the paneer pieces moving until they are light golden brown. If you are trying the tofu, then you would need to add some oil to stir fry. Marinate the paneer pieces overnight in the fridge with the soy sauce (diluted with half as much water), sweet chilli sauce, fresh coriander, fresh ginger and chilli paste and the ground coriander and cumin seeds.

Heat all the other ingredients and add the marinated paneer pieces and heat through. I usually need to add a cupful of water at this stage and let it boil off - it is ready when the paneer pieces become very soft. Sprinkle with chopped fresh coriander and serve with hot naan bread.