What's cooking / VT cookbook merge

[lapal_fan]

Can those in the know have a read and tell me if it's a lot of work for the dish or if it can be done more easily

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[CVByrne]

Nah that's easy to make Brian. I make curries all the time.

[privateer]

No, that's not difficult or complicated. The only variations I might make are the following:

Do the onions in a blender so you get an onion puree rather than chopping them. Make sure you blend the **** out of them and they will add a nice texture as well as acting as a thickening agent as they break down during cooking.

Par-boil the potatoes slightly before adding them. I do mine peeled, cubed and then for four to five minutes in the microwave with a couple of tablespoons of water and a teaspoon of turmeric powder. You can throw the cooking water in the curry sauce.

Use mutton if you can get it and cook it for longer.

Don't overdo the wine vinegar at the beginning. It should be vinegar-sour but you'll be much better off adding some if it is not sour enough than trying to correct the balance of an over-sour sauce.

[CVByrne]

Defo put the whole thing in the oven if possible, for at least 1.5/2 hours at 160C. It'll make the meat so tender. 30mins isn't even remotley long enough to cook it.

[Meath_Villan]

Just received this from the missus. Can those in the know have a read and tell me if it's a lot of work for the dish or if it can be done more easily. Does seem an awful lot of ingredients!

Lamb Vindaloo

Ingredients

3 table spoons coriender seeds

2 table spoons cumin seeds

8 Bay leaves (6 cm long each)

1 table spoon Black pepper corns

2 table spoons cardamom buds

1 table spoon cloves

2 table spoons dried red chilli

1 table spoon dried mustard seeds

1 cinamon stick 3 cm long cut in several small peices

1 table spoon cayenne powder

1 table spoon turmeric

1 table spoon fenugreek seeds

1 kilogram of pure lamb shoulder muscle cyt in 4 cm strips or cubes

10 garlic cloves crushed

1 table spoon salt

1 table spoon sugar

1 kilogram red hard tomatoes diced finely

1 sweat green pepper cut in small strips

2 green chillis cut in thin slices with seeds

1 cup yogurt

3 table spoons grated fresh ginger

2 large onions diced

2 medium size potatoes

4 table spoons butter

1 cup wine venigar

Directions

Rosat all the spices listed above from 1-12 in a hot frying pan for few minutes on a slow heat. Do not burn them, Do not smell the aroma please. All the spice mix has to be roased.

Remove all the spice mixture and put in a grinder mixer. Grind all the spices to a fine powder. Do not smell the mix.

Mix the powdered spices with garlic, ginger, yogurt, salt, sugar and wine venigar

Add the labm pieces to the marinad above and store refrigerated over night. Mix several times while marinating

Melt butter in a pot, fry the potatoes for 5 minutes, then add the onions, green chilli, tomatoes and fry for 10 minutes

Add the lamb with the marinade to the tomato mixture and simmer for 30 minutes.

Let evaporate to thicken the sauce.

Serve with Basmati rice, naan and Raita.

Be careful, this dish is not for every one. This is one of my favorite hot and spicy dishes

Note you can keep half the marinade frozen for next time. You may also substitute lamb for chicken breast cut in cubes or use drum sticks instead. Enjoy

Copper and spice ludlow street navan does some nice stuff !!

[CVByrne]

Bombay Pantry all round the place in Dublin. Fantastic stuff.

[Juju]

The only time consuming stuff there Brian is the spice mix.

Perhaps if you make enough for a few portions, and possibly store the excess in an airtight kilner jar, and perhaps keep somewhere cool, you can get a few curries this way.

Then its just the basic marinading and cooking to do. And once you bought all the ingredients once, cheaply from an Indian supermarket, you'll have enough spices to last you months and momths. And, you can get creative, perhaps making your own spice mix, adding things you like, like a little star anise, or omitting some of the chili for a cooler curry.

And my secret to a decent curry is "planning". If you fancy one, actually, the creation is as much fun as anything - just be in the mood for an unhurried hour or so with the stove, rather than the "i'm hungry, need to cook now!" thing.

Oh, and Ikea do pretty servicable pestle and mortars for £7, stone, so won't taint or discolour like wood, and you can give a good bash. Thats as good as a blender, possibly better.

[CVByrne]

I seriously recommend using the oven for curries, it works an absolute tread and doesn't require stirring.

Also don't grate the ginger, chop it up and the garlic and blend to a paste with the onions. This makes the base for the curry and also acts as a thickening agent.

I'm also very fond of light coconut milk used instead of stock or water, it gives a lovely creamy finish without need for double cream.

[CVByrne]

Oh and spice or coffee grinder is a must for any regular curry maker. Pestle and morta is too much effort in the long run and storing spice mixes isn't as good as freshly ground spices.

[peterms]

Just received this from the missus. Can those in the know have a read and tell me if it's a lot of work for the dish or if it can be done more easily. Does seem an awful lot of ingredients!

It's a lot of ingredients, but the actual work involved isn't as great as the length of the recipe would make you think. You do need to make sure you have airtight jars to store what's left over by way of spices, though.

Agree with CVB's comment about liquidising garlic and ginger. You can do that in bulk, freeze in ice cube trays, then store loose in a plastic bag in the freezer. Saves lots of time next time round.

One possibly lengthy thing which isn't mentioned is preparing the lamb. It says "pure lamb shoulder muscle". When I buy lamb shoulder, it can be pretty fatty, and you want to cut off the excess, and any skin, but leave enough fat to moisten the dish and add flavour (which is why a fatty joint like shoulder is better for this sort of dish than leg). I get it on the bone as well, and deboning can take a few minutes. But if you're happy to pay a butcher to do all that for you, that saves time.

Half an hour is too short a time to cook this, even with the effect of having marinaded it. I do it for about an hour and a half, and it's so tender you don't need a knife to cut it. I don't do it in the oven, but on the stove. You do need to make sure it's barely simmering, though. One or two tiny bubbles every few seconds - more than that, and you need to stand over it and stir. If it's just quivering, that's perfect.

Not sure about the potatoes, though. Nor the "sweat green pepper". :winkold: I would do a veggie side dish. Use up whatever's around and needs using.

[BOF]

Cheers lads. The list of ingredients is the most daunting thing

And Juju made a funny

omitting some of the chili for a cooler curry

[rjw63]

I'm gettin a new wok soon, so expect some ring burning curries

[privateer]

Half an hour is too short a time to cook this, even with the effect of having marinaded it. I do it for about an hour and a half, and it's so tender you don't need a knife to cut it. I don't do it in the oven, but on the stove. You do need to make sure it's barely simmering, though. One or two tiny bubbles every few seconds - more than that, and you need to stand over it and stir. If it's just quivering, that's perfect.

Not sure about the potatoes, though. Nor the "sweat green pepper". :winkold: I would do a veggie side dish. Use up whatever's around and needs using.

You are right about the cooking time, 30 minutes is bollocks. I do think the oven is a good suggestion, though. As you say, doing it on the stove is good and surely the authentic way but my hob won't do it despite having 5 different burners. None of them will do it slowly enough so sticking it in a low oven with a lid works perfectly. Otherwise too much stirring is involved.

One other thing. I remember a restaurant owner telling me frying chillis reduced their grunt so you may just want to throw them in the sauce. I don't know if it's true but that's what he said.

[CVByrne]

I have the same problem with my cooker, the lowest setting is too hot to get it on a gentle simmer. Oven is perfect as everyone has an oven and knows how to use it.

Also veg will turn to mush if cooked that long with the meat. I'd either throw them in near the end of take the advice of having them as a side dish.

Oh and finally marinating lamb is less important than it is with chicken due to the lower water content. You can skip this part if prep time is at a minimum.

[peterms]

If the gas won't go low enough, may be worth getting a heat diffuser.

My gas will go low enough, but a diffuser is useful for cooking in an earthenware tagine, which I wouldn't want to have on a naked flame.

[PompeyVillan]

Is you a chef Mr Peter?

[CVByrne]

If the gas won't go low enough, may be worth getting a heat diffuser.

My gas will go low enough, but a diffuser is useful for cooking in an earthenware tagine, which I wouldn't want to have on a naked flame.

I never give Moroccan much of a go. But did try a bung it all in a pot, seal it tightly and put it in a low heat oven for 4 hours. Jamie Oliver did it in Marrakesh. Turned out pretty nice actually.

Heat diffuser is one way, but I use my cast iron griddle pan on a low heat, then put the pot on that. Works just as well. But still I prefer the oven. Start on the hob, finish in the oven. Especially for rice.

[peterms]

Is you a chef Mr Peter?

No, but I will be cooking for 25 paying customers this Fri and Sat at the top-rated restaurant in a small provincial town...not on my own, with a proper chef to chivvy me along and bark instructions if I fall behind... :winkold:

[rjw63]

I'm gettin a new wok soon, so expect some ring burning curries

Got mynew wok last week and tonight broke it in with a jalfrezi with extra chillies

BTW the container on the left is the portion I have to take out for my sister and her old man, they HATE chilli or anything hot, so I take theirs out before adding the heat

[snowychap]

Is you a chef Mr Peter?

No, but I will be cooking for 25 paying customers this Fri and Sat at the top-rated restaurant in a small provincial town...not on my own, with a proper chef to chivvy me along and bark instructions if I fall behind... :winkold:

Are you Dick Strawbridge?