curry chronicles

I started buying whole chickens years ago and slowly got better at cutting them up. I actually time it now and it takes me less than two minutes to do it. Once you figure out the joint structure it gets much easier.

That said I never make curries (or any braised / simmered dishes) from whole ones because I inevitably end up overcooking the white meat. Feel like I'm doing something wrong somewhere.

yeah i'm not sure how this will turn out with the varying sizes of chicken pieces. i could have bought a bunch of thighs or drumsticks. the marinade smells so great though. it's yogurt, ginger, garlic, serrano chiles (5 of them!), ground up whole spices, and cilantro. i'm looking for a cauliflower + frozen peas recipe. i am turning into a curry master.

I had some japanese curry today at a japanese restaurant - I need to find some of those japanese curry cubes

i tried to make a beetroot curry this week and it tasted really good but i guess i didn't cut the beetroot up small enough, because after cooking it for like an hour it still wasn't tender. so i ate a delicious curry of undercooked beetroot. i'll try again when i've got the energy to cut beetroot up really small or when i buy some ready-cooked beetroot.

the chicken worked pretty well. we ate a drumstick and a thigh each so there are still breasts in the fridge (sounds weird), but i cut into them to test doneness and they looked good. but i don't see any reason next time not to just buy drumsticks rather than a whole chicken. the marinade was perfect. hot enough to make my nose run but i like it that way. if anyone is wondering this was yogurt-almond chicken with a spinach sauce from 660 curries.

i also made something like "cayenne-spiked cauliflower," which was predictably pretty hot and very good.

OK so I wanna make a vege korma for dinner. It seems the proper recipe involves creamed cashewnuts, which really, isnt gonna happen - tho I do have a half bag of mixed raw nuts I could use I spose.

But I have green beans, carrots, eggplat, zukes, etc and a can of tomatoes, curry spices and some powdered coconut cream... is there anything special that makes it a korma?

you have probably already cooked dinner (idk what time it is there) but i want to make vegetable korma now too! i just went grocery shopping and got what i needed. i was gonna say i thought it meant cooked in cream/yogurt but wikipedia just said braised in liquid. it's not in my cookbook so i'm gonna try some internet recipes. i got half and half, canned tomatoes, slivered almonds, and i have plain yogurt and various vegetables to use. i was looking at some paneer in whole foods but it was pricey. i might go to the indian store. don't really need it though, it'll have more than enough fatty dairy.

You can make paneer pretty easily if you have time.

yeah i've made it before and found it to be a huge pain. i also have a very small kitchen so i want to keep the number of steps to a minimum.

harbl! Now I want curry!

I have small amts of red and yellow lentils in my freezer that I used like 4 years ago for a soup that it turned out I didn't like. I need something else to do w them.

daal, maybe spinach&mushroom w/ some mustard seeds & served w/ raita?

tonight - RENDANG

what is a really good basic curry recipe for a first-timer? i've never made a proper one before, but i had an amazing tofu curry a couple weeks ago at a french-vietnamese place and want to replicate it. the menu just said "Sautéed tofu & vegetables in coconut curry & Thai basil".

if you want thai curry you can get cans of mae-sri curry paste at asian stores for like $1. the green is very hot but red is safe. you just need a can of coconut milk and some water or vegetable broth and vegetables (e.g., sweet potatoes, green beans, chinese eggplant, red bell peppers, zucchini, cabbage). it has shallots and ginger and stuff in it but i always saute some before i add everything. if it was vietnamese try my made-up recipe above. i get curry a lot at a nearby vietnamese place and i think it tastes pretty close. i think the brand of curry powder is important; i got that at h-mart a while ago and my chinese grocery store has it too.

this is kind of similar to what i do for thai curry but i think the separate coconut cream/curry paste step is not necessary http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/the-temporary-vegetarian-vegan-thai-curry-vegetables/

thanks harbl!

I didnt end up making korma after all, I got too drunk to cook ,hahaha :(

ok i'm making it for you. i think it's gonna be too tomato-ey but i wanted to use less half-and-half. i didn't use a recipe so i get what i deserve.

harbl, I tried to make a vegetable biryani using some biryani paste from a jar, but it was too sour. do you think adding half-and-half would help control the taste?

I'm gonna make one tonight! I will use tomatoes too (maybe only half a can) but I'll add a little stock, and some coconut milk and some yogurt.

lol i know nothing about biryani sorry. you might try yogurt though because half and half would probably curdle.

a red lentil curry with a spice combo that is whole cumin, fennel seeds, mustard seeds, and fenugreek. supposed to have nigella but i didn't have that. also 3 serrano chiles, a tomato, other stuff. cilantro and lime! this is great

might do a biryani next weekend

oh this is what the spice mixture is called http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panch_phoron. i think he left out radhuni because it might be impossible to find here? never heard of it.

harbl! Now I want curry!

― drawn to them like a moth toward a spanakopita (Laurel), Saturday, February 18, 2012 10:45 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

laurel otm itt

i hope i am inspiring everyone to want curry. i have been learning so much about how stuff works together, it's weird! i have been a decent cook for a while but i feel like this curry period has brought unprecedented growth!

like i used to just make up how to do curry and it was like always cumin, coriander, turmeric, maybe cardamom. there's a whole other world out there.

the chicken worked pretty well. we ate a drumstick and a thigh each so there are still breasts in the fridge
--kim tim jim investor (harbl)

ooooooOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooo

harblz i made that curry you linked to - it was really good!

I forgot also to mention I ended up making a veggie korma. Despite adding both coconut milk and some greek yoghurt, it still seemed a little runny and not-sweet. I think it needed thick coconut cream. And obvoiusly needed the pulverised cashews. I'll have to try it again with those additions (and maybe some paneer this time too).

i made a lamb and potato curry recipe from 660 curries yesterday and it came out great except one problem i have had with multiple recipes containing potatoes: they always take much much longer to cook than the recipe says. it said to fry the potato cubes until browned, which i did and i took as long as it said to take, and then you add the potatoes back after the lamb is cooked and cook it all together until the potato is cooked, which said 5-8 minutes. well i cooked them all for an extra 40 minutes after that! the lamb was perfect but the potatoes were still a little crunchy. next time i will steam them before i brown them.

yeah i have that problem with potatoes all the time, too.

made chicken korma last night. it is delish, but i should branch out with my curries.

microwaving potatoes beforehand is always a good idea; i only use raw taters if i chop them into small cubes and fry them in oil (for aloo gobi etc).

soaking the peas for this atm. ive never used roasted coriander seeds before, should be interesting.

i am having the same problem again now making a lentil soup with potatoes in it. i followed all the instructions!

hmm. usually in a soup it's easy to get potatoes to cook through

horseshoe can i have your korma recipe plz?

i like fish curry + i like felicity cloake & this is appropriately fine imo

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2012/mar/29/how-to-cook-perfect-goan-fish-curry

yes! it is madhur jaffrey's recipe; hopefully she will not be mad i posted it on the internet. you heat up 1/4 cup of heavy cream, stir a teaspoon of saffron into it, and set the saffron cream aside for a couple of hours.

the recipe calls for ~5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs, but i usually do bone-in. it's tastier imo. heat 5 tablespoons vegetable oil in a wide pan, like a dutch oven, over medium high heat. when it's hot, add 12 green cardamom pods, 4 sticks of cinnamon and 6 bay leaves. stir once, and then put as many chicken thighs in as will fit. brown the chicken on both sides (i feel like i always rush this step; it takes a while. your kitchen will smell really good though!) then put it in a bowl and brown the rest of it, putting it all in the bowl when you're done.

once you've browned all the chicken, add 2 medium onions, sliced, to the pan. stir and fry till they're reddish-brown (i tend to rush this step, too...i think it takes a good 8 minutes at least.) add 2 tablespoons grated ginger and 8 cloves minced garlic (well, according to jaffrey, crushed to a pulp), then stir for a minute. then add 1/4 cup whole almonds, 1/4 cup golden raisins, 2 tbsp. coriander and 1 tbsp. cumin. stir once, then return chicken + accumulated juices to the pan. add 1 c. yogurt (whisk it first, to even the consistency), 3 tsp salt and 2 tsp cayenne pepper. Stir and bring to a simmer.

Partially cover and cook over medium for 10 minutes. then raise the heat to high and stir the meat until the sauce thickens and clings to the meat. stir in the saffron cream, 1/2 tsp. garam masala* and 1/2 c of water. cover fully and leave on low heat for a while. the cookbook says 5 minutes, but that never cooks the chicken completely, maybe because it's bone-in? i usually just keep checking to see if the meat is cooked through.

*lately i just use store-bought garam masala, but jaffrey hates it and insists you should grind a bunch of whole spices to make your own. she is very detail-oriented and it can be kind of annoying, but the homemade garam masala is better. let me know if you want the "recipe."

xp

this is not my mom's recipe, obvs, but she requests that i make it on eid + stuff which is the best recommendation of it i can give.

wow that is a hardcore recipe, no wonder the short-cut vegan one i've used has been so disappointing!!!!

haha yeah it's supposed to be for parties and occasions. it is not fucking around.

no reason you couldn't make a vegetarian version but i admit i can't figure out how you would adapt it for vegan cooking, not that i know much about tha.

wow I am doing that recipe next time I get a chance

oh, and when you take the chicken out of the pan, you're supposed to try and leave as many whole spices in the pan as possible.

dayo, it is really simple for the level of deliciousness yielded! it's my go-to dinner party dish.

i think it would veganize pretty easily - i would use fake chicken, so obv i wouldn't get all the pan juices so that would affect the taste, but i'd sub out the heavy cream for either cashew cream or coconut cream or a mix which i think would work pretty well.

oh duh, yeah coconut cream would work great, i think!

and soy yoghurt.

actually, it's probably not so hardcore - the cardamon pods and cinnamon sticks freaked me out, though!

or coconut milk yoghurt.

i thought you meant hardcore as in hardcore fatty, which it is.

the chickpeas w coconut sauce was very very delicious and so quick to make! delicious way to use up canned chickpeas

am going to do up a vindaloo this week bc i havent had one in so long (like decades)

curries are the best! also i kinda love not having to chop a ton of veg or buy a ton of ingredients. once you have your spice situation set up, its a fkn breeze i love ir

omg i am so on the curry train

i made a tomato biryani tonight that wasn’t even with exact ingredients bc i couldnt be arsed but turned out amaaazimg anyway AND a chicken & spinach & garam masala curry w almonds & raisins and my third eye is completely open omg

have made the chicken spinach raisin almond one, there is a recipe in 660 curries. very good.

that’s the one i made! :D

:)

i was thinking i might try to cook all 660 curries, with no deadline. if i tried to do it in like a year i'd be curried out.

i’m working my way through the majority of his chapter on chicken curries, in no particular order

its amazing how many of these you can make if you remember to stock up on almonds, spinach & yogurt!

Love Babish, loved Cardoz (RIP)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuXyLBeQ8-w

oh, i watched his previous episodes (i believe these were with babish, there was a bread one?). i remembered he had died, didn't know from covid. RIP.

yes, the bread one was, they just said

"one of my hated ingredients is curry powder" YES

He's definitely done one with Babish before - I think it *was breads, there's a reference in this one to the curries being suitable to be eaten with sides other than bread. Always love a good makhani recipe, though making that would definitely leave me very conscious of how unhealthy it is!

xp