Medium Curry Gravy

Pat Chapman's currys work like lego, where you build and store complex building blocks that you can quickly combine to make a tasty curry on the fly. Not a technique for someone who does the occasional Tikka Masala, once in a blue moon, but more of a way of life. Restaurants use similar principles, but on a much larger scale.

So putting a few bricks together brings us to this recipe for Medium Curry Gravy. A veritable Princes Leia in your Lego Star Wars set. "Help me Obi-Wan Pat Chapman, you're my only hope".

Ingredients (makes enough for a meal for about 4 people)

• 2 tbsp Curry Powder (use either Pat's Curry Masala or the ground spice version, curry powder, the last time I made this, I used the former).
• 2 tbsp Ghee
• 50g (2 oz) Garlic Cloves chopped
• 250 g Spannish Onions, chopped
• 4 Canned Plum Tomatoes, drained
• 200 ml (7 floz) Water
• 2 tbsp Green Pepper, finely chopped
• Aromatic Salt to taste (you could just use normal salt instead, but as the aromatic version is so easy to make, you'd be barking mad to do so)
  

Preparation

• Add some water to the curry powder to make a paste.
• Heat the ghee in a wok or large frying pan till hot.
• Add the paste and fry for a minute or two.
• Add the garlic and stir fry for a minute or until golden brown.
• Add the Onions, mix in and fry until caramelised.
• Add the tomatoes and Water.
• Take off the heat and puree to a consistency in a blender.
• Return to the pan.
• Add the green pepper.
• Cook on a low heat for another 10 minutes. The gravy should turn to the dark side, and thicken.
• Add the aromatic salt to taste.

Now you've put those pieces together, it's on to building that Death Star. Stay tuned. You can't stop the signal.

This gravy can be frozen, in a conventional freezer should Carbonite not be available. I'd recommend making enough for 2 or 3 meals at once (apply a suitable multiplier to the ingredients) and always keeping some available on standby for future Bantha Fodder, or when you're eating solo.

Curry Masala

A mix of pre-ground spices courtesy of Pat Chapman's The New Curry Bible: The Ultimate Modern Curry House Recipe Book (Curry Club)

Masala means, mix of spices, so curry Masala is a mix of spices used to make a curry.

An alternative blend to the home roast spice method I got from another bible, Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible, this one is a useful one if you are in a hurry or don't want the grind of the other.

Ingredients

• 60g Ground Coriander
• 30g Cumin
• 20g Fenugreek
• 25g Gram Flour (besan)
• 25g Garlic Powder
• 20g Paprika
• 20g Tumeric
• 20g Garam Masala
• 5g Bay Leaf
• 5g Asofetida
• 5g Ginger
• 5g Chilli Powder
• 5g English Mustard Powder
• 5g Black Pepper
• 5g Cinnamon

Preparation

• Mix well and store in an airtight container in a cool dark place.

Wow, that's some array of spices, but a tasty one.

Aromatic Salt

Years ago, I used to make a Chinese Spiced salt mix, that made for some tasty dishes. This is an Indian equivalent that enhances any curry, when used instead of ordinary salt. What's more, it's easy to make.

Ingredients

• 100g (3 1/2 oz) Maldon Sea Salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground allspice
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preparation (easy peasy, lemon squeezy)

• Grind in small batches with a mortar and pestle.
• Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.
  

Garam Masala

The spice blend Garam Masala means 'warm spice' and is used in both Indian and Pakistani cooking. Other variants can be found in countries such as Trinidad and Guyana, where local spices have been added to the blend. As the name implies only spices that heat the body, black cardamon, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin and green cardamon should be used to make it. As these are expensive, however, this can be cut with cheaper spices, such as coriander.

Shop bought Garam Masala doesn't keep as well as home made and is less potent. In view of this additional potency you should therefore use less of the home ground variety than it's mass produced weaker cousin.

Garam Masala is often added to a dish at the end of the cooking process, when the full aroma isn't lost and it can add a wonderful fragrance to your dish.

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Ingredients

• 1 tbsp Cardamom Seeds
• 1 tsp Black Peppercorns
• 1 tsp Whole Cloves
• 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1/3 a nutmeg
• 2-3 inch (5 - 7 1/2 cm) piece of Cinnamon Stick

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Preparation

• Grind the spices in batches as finely as possible. The Cinnamon stick is a beast to grind so I'd recommend using a heavy cleaver to chop it finely before you attempt to grind it. This is especially true if you are using a mortar and pestle. For the other spices you can also use the cleaver to take out some of the grunt work. First crush them under the flat of the blade, then rock the blade back and forth over the spices to roughly chop them.
  

• Store in an airtight jar, in a cool dark place. A badger sett would be ideal, but watch out for the badger!

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Chicken Tikka Kebabs

These kebabs can either be served on their own as a starter, when they'll serve 8 people, or with a sauce to make Chicken Tikka Masala, when they'll serve 4. For greedy hungry people change those numbers to 6 and 3.

Ideally these should be marinated overnight, so marinade them up the day before you are going to eat them.

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Ingredients

• 675g (1 1/2 lb) boned & skinned chicken breasts cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) pieces
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp fresh ginger peeled and finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic peeled and pulped
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 - 3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 6 tbsp whipping cream
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 3 tbsp peanut oil

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Marinading

• Put the chicken in a bowl and rub in the salt and lemon juice.

• Prod the pieces lightly with a knife and rub in again.

• Set aside for 20 minutes.

• Add the: -
• ginger;
• garlic;
• cumin;
• paprika;
• cayenne;
• garam masala;
• cream.

• Mix well, cover and put in the fridge for 6 - 8 hours, or preferably overnight.

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Cooking

• Preheat the grill just before serving (If like me your grill is rubbish, you can cook the chicken on a griddle pan).

• Thread the meat onto 2 - 4 long metal skewers.

• Brush with oil and balance on rim of a small shallow baking tray.

• Place about 13cm (5 inches) from the heat source and grill for about 6 minutes a side until lightly browned and cooked through.
  

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Chicken Tikka Masala

I guess at some point I had to include the nations favourite food. Apart from being very popular, this is also very good.

Please note that the Chicken Tikka Kebabs in this recipe need 6-8 hours to marinade (or preferably overnight), so marinade them before starting in on the masala sauce.

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Ingredients

• 4 tbsp oil peanut or olive
• 140g (5 oz) onions sliced finely into half rings
• 1 tbsp ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 6 cloves of garlic pulped
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tbsp ground tumeric
• 3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp paprika (I'd recommend Pimenton de la vera if you can get hold of it)
• 4 tbsp full fat natural yoghurt such as greek (don't use a low fat yoghurt)
• 3 medium tomatoes peeled, seeded and finely chopped
• 350 ml (12 fl oz) chicken stock
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 4 tbsp fresh coriander leaves chopped
• 1 batch of freshly made Chicken Tikka Kebabs

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Preparation

1. Heat the oil in a wok or large non-stick saucepan over a medium-high heat.
2. When it is hot add the onions and stir fry for about 6-7 minutes until they turn light brown.
3. Add the ginger and garlic and fry for another minute.
4. Add the coriander, tumeric, cayenne and paprika.
5. Stir for around ten seconds
6. Add a tablespoon of the yoghurt.
7. Stir until absorbed.
8. Repeat steps 6 -7 until all the yoghurt has been used.
9. Add the tomatoes and fry them for 3-4 minutes, pressing them with a spatula or wooden spoon to turn them into a pulp.
10. Add the stock and season with salt to taste.
11. Reduce to a low heat, cover and continue to simmer gently for 15-20 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave it until the kebabs are cooked.
    
12. When the kebabs are cooked reheat the sauce.
13. Stir in the garam masala and coriander leaves and add more salt to taste.
14. Fold in the kebabs and serve.
    

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Curry Powder

It might be a bit of a grind, but there is no substitute for using freshly made curry powder in your cooking. Whether it's a parsnip soup a-la Elizabeth David, or, believe it or not, a curry, home made is the real deal.

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Ingredients

• 2 tbsp whole coriander seeds
• 1tbsp whole cumin seeds
• 2 tsp whole peppercorns
• 1 1/2 tsp whole brown mustard seeds
• 5-6 whole cloves
• 3 dried, crumbled, hot red chillies
• 1 tsp whole fenugreek seeds
• 1 tsp ground tumeric
  

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Preparation

• Heat a small hard bottomed frying pan over a medium heat.

• When hot add the: -

• coriander;
• cumin;
• peppercorns;
• mustard seeds;
• cloves;
• chillies.

• Stir until spices emit a light roasted aroma. Some of the spices will darken slightly. Take care to roast very lightly or the mix will turn bitter.

• Add the:-
  
• fenugreek;
• tumeric.

• Stir for 10 seconds.

• Empty on to a clean plate to cool.

• Grind as finely as possible in a clean coffee or spice grinder or mortar and pestle.

• Store in a clean jar keeping away from heat or sunlight.

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Note: To make a spicier blend add from 1/2 to 2 tsp of good quality chilli powder to the mix.

If you can't take the grind, try the pre-grounhd mix I posted, Curry Powder 2 that I took from Pat Chapman's The New Curry Bible: The Ultimate Modern Curry House Recipe Book (Curry Club)

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Itihaas Birmingham

Itihaas won the award for Best Restaurant in the Midlands and the top award of Best in the UK in the 2007 Good Curry Guide. The visit of the Red Dwarf and family to the UK was therefore a good excuse to give it a try. Dosas, Indian Lamb Chops and Carrot Cake were all excellent as was the smoked aubergine veggy option.

Service was a little slow but the Indian music piped through the sound system was very good for once.

Curry Fever Leicester

Another visit to Leicester, another trip to Curry Fever.

As usual the Fever's signature dishes of Jeera Chicken, Pili Pili Chicken Masala and Kenyan chicken waranted their normal 11 out of 10 ratings on the taste front. Unfortunately though the Flute Cafe is now sourced from a dfferent supplier in Italy and is now a pale shadow of its former glory. Still an excellent meal though, in the best Indian restaurant in Leicester and one of the finest in the Midlands.

Good Curry Guide 2007

Finally, after more delays than this years Wimbledon, the 2007 edition of Pat Chapman's the Good Curry Guide is out. Hurrah!!!

There's a good deal on it at Amazon.co.uk at the moment, so get it while it's hot.

This years award winners are:-

British Regions
Best in the North Best Indian
Indian Ocean, 83 Stamford Street, E Ashton 0161 343 3343

Best in Midlands
Itihaas, 18 Fleet Street, Birmingham, B3 0121 212 3383 Website: http://www.itihaas.co.uk/

Best in Scotland
Ashoka at the Mill
10 Clydeholme Rd, Glasgow G14 0141 576 5123

Best in the South and West
Tamasha
131 Widmore Rd, Bromley, Kent (Gtr London) 020 8460 3240

Best in London
Mint Leaf
Suffolk Place, SW1 020 7839 6673

Best in Wales
Misbah
9 Priory St, Monmouth, NP25 3BR 01600 714940

National Cuisines
Best Bangladeshi
Kutis
37 Oxford Street, Southampton, 023 8022 1585

Best Indian
Imli
167 Wardour Street, W1 020 7287 4243 Website: http://www.imli.co.uk/

Best Nepalese
Monty's
224 South Ealing Rd, W5 020 8560 2619 Website: http://www.montys-restaurant.co.uk/

Best Pakastani
Kinara at Pitt's Cottage, Highstreet, Limpfield Rd, Westerfield, Kent
01959 562125

Best Sri Lankan
Elephant Walk, 98 West End Lane, NW6 020 7328 3308

Miscellaneous
Best Vegetarian
Chai Pani
64 Seymour St, W1 020 8560 2619

Chef of the Year
Stephen Gomes
Cafe Naz Group
E1 Cambridge and Cardiff

Most Welcome Newcomer (Joint Winners)
Moti Mahal
45 Great Queen St, WC2 020 7240 9329
Victoria's India, The Manse, Church St, Longridge, Lancs 01727 785111

Best Oriental Asian UK Restaurant
Orchid Lounge Thai at Jaipur, 1st Floor, 599 Grafton Gate E, Milton
Keynes, Bucks, 01908 669 811

Best European Restaurant
Tandoor Palace
Charanjit Singh, ul. Marszalkowska, 21 Warsaw, 00-825+48228252375

Special Awards
UK Lifetime Achievement Award
Kewal Anand, Brilliant Restaurant
72 Western Rd, Southall, 020 8574 1928

International Lifetime Achievement Award
Satish Arora, Chef Culinaire, Taj Hotels Group
Chef Director, Chef Director of Food Roduction

Best UK Restaurant
Itihaas, 18 Fleet Street, Birmingham, B3 0121 212 3383 Website: http://www.itihaas.co.uk/

I'll post reviews on the ones I get to try out and link to them from this post.

If anyone's eaten in any of them then feel free to leave your comments here.

Lamb With Spinach

In a recent conversation with my good friend Corby, the subject of Indian food came up. Somewhere down the line he mentioned that he was looking for a good recipe for Lamb with Spinach. Turning to one of the finest Indian cookery books in the world, Camellia Panjabi's 50 Great Curries Of India, I found the following recipe, and blogged it for him.

Serves 4

Ingredients

700g (1 1/2lb) Lamb cubed
2cm x 5mm (3/4 * 1/4 inch) fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves
1-2 green chillies
1/2 cup of yoghurt
1/4 tsp cumin
200g (7oz) spinach leaves
1/4 cup of oil
1 Bay Leaf
1 Black Cardomon
2 cloves
225g (8oz) Onions Chopped
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp cumin
2 medium tomatoes chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp salt
nutmeg
a knob of butter

Preparation

Soak the lamb in warm water for 15 mins

Puree Ginger, Chilli & Garlic and add the yoghurt + 1/4 tsp cumin powder

Marinate the lamb in the mix for at least 1 hour

Blanch spinach in boliing salted water for 10 seconds and puree

Heat oil in a pan with bay leaf, cardomon & cloves. When hot add the onions & cook for 15 minutes over a moderate heat.

Add coriander powder and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Addthe 1/2 tsp cumin and after 10 secs a little water. Allow to cook.

Add meat + marinade, stir and cook on moderate heat for 10 minutes until yoghurt is absorbed. Saute for 3 mins stirring constantly. Add tomatoes & tomato puree and cook for a few more minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups of hot water and 3/4 tsp salt. Turn down low and leave to simmer. When meat is almost done add the spinach season to taste and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes uncovered.

When ready to serve prinkle with grated nutmeg and knob of butter.