Please don't ban me for this!!! LOL!!!!

I know of many decent cooks who reach for the jar of Patak's Curry Paste when they want to make a quick, really easy curry. I know this doesn't make the best (possibly not even a very good) curry but it's better than a ready meal one when you can't be bothered to faff about or are really pressed for time - isn't it??

My husband can't eat garlic (can't, not doesn't want to) so these jars of paste are not an option in this house (probably a good thing?), but I would like to have the easy option they give for making a curry sometimes.

You know the day's, you get home from work late and look in the fridge/ freezer/ cupboards, you really fancy a curry with the odds and ends you find there but the oomph for spice gathering etc just isn't there. It would be really nice, as I pass through the kitchen, to put the pan on to heat up, put some already fried onion and ginger mixture in the microwave to defrost, go upstairs to change and then be ready on my return to put this lot together with the chicken that's in the fridge, a few other bit's and bob's and a dollop of curry paste in the heated pan and have a nice curry on the table.

Obviously for me to do this I'll have to make some paste, minus the garlic!! I have a couple of Pat Chapman books which have a recipe for curry paste and I think I might as well give it a whirl but in order to make his version I need to make a "curry powder" first. Well long story short, I've blown up my spice grinder so I can't BUT I can buy a powder I like from Julian Graves, if I use the same weight as the recipe in the books makes it should work shouldn't it?

Don't panic folks I won't give up on the "real deal" but it would be nice to be able to make a quick curry when I need to.

Hi Deb

You can make a perfectly good curry without garlic. In fact, half the vegetarians in India do not eat garlic, including my mum and sisters.

when you are working full time, the trick is to make a lot of curry sauce on days when you have time and keep it in the fridge or freezer. You can use any curry powder, but I tend to use the basic curry spices. Try this Basic Curry sauce recipe.

Mamta

That raises a few more questions in my mind. Be patient!!

1. Splitting hairs, perhaps, but how does one make a Paste - as opposed to a Sauce?

2. Commercial Paste seems to have a warmth that is difficult to repeat when using powder?

3. "1/2 tsp Turmeric" in recipe - for flavour or colour?: "if you want it redder, add Paprika" - & omit Turmeric, if there for colour?

4. Sultanas? - every so often I have to do "an English Curry" for my Wife!!

for me, the paste is a mix of ingredients to add to frying meat(or veg)to add the flavours. A sauce is a 'fait accompli' in as much as its ready to be served, only heated through with cooked meat/veg. I like to think of most 'curries' as gravies, where the meat/veg flavours are developed with carefully chosen spices, etc. So, I understand the need for a quick curry, but believe that I would be giving up too much in the way of flavour.

Even though curry houses would argue, for me, curry is not a sauce (there are always exceptions in Indian cuisine, maybe because it is so varied). The spices/herbs are chosen (in decent recipes at least) to perform certain functions, and expecting a 'one fits all' spice paste is expecting too much. Some of the mass market pastes aren't too bad in my estimation, but must be used in the correct way, and for the intended dish only.

My only real suggestion is to do some cooking when you have the time, and batch and freeze the 'real deal'. Many Indian dishes freeze really well (avoid potato and those with cream in).

Point taken - but is there any special, commercial ingredient that makes pastes so comforting?

msg ;?)

a good spice paste will be well matured, so that the flavours are extracted into the oil, if used. It's what should happen if a 'curry' is made properly, the flavours are extracted into the oil/fat/ghee, and then probably mixed with water based ingredients to form the 'gravy'. This process is fundamental to good cooking techniques, not only to Indian cuisine, but to many others.

So the spice pastes are one step removed from do-it-yourself curry making, where spices are added at certain times during the cooking process, to effectively extract the flavours and to reduce the chances of burning. If made correctly, the pastes can perform this function well, much better than dry mixes, which have to be added at one time only. Then the extraction is not complete, certain spices do not change flavour, and far more spice is usually used than is necessary with other methods.

Its similar to the chilli question; if extracted into oil/f/g, the chilli will provide heat in the form of an overall mouth glow, if not extracted (left whole or chopped), pockets of extreme heat may result.

Curry pastes in the jars are more like pickles, made quite spicy as well as hot, in a lot of oil. They also have additives like flavour enhancers and colouring usually. Brand name Curry powders/spice mixes for individual dishes are also reasonably good, but usually too hot in my experience and have additives like MSG/other flavour/colour enhancers. They do give you pretty good results, and fine for occasional use. Making your own curry sauce (gravy) however is different and more fun, it caters for your individual taste and is different for different dishes.

Spices like turmeric (and other) are there for colour, taste, flavour and health benefits. In traditional cuisine, different things are used in different dishes for a reason. For example, tarka to dals with cumin and asafoetida reduces the flatulence caused by them. Cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves and so on all have their own effects, mostly beneficial. Sultanas in curries are fine, if you like them. Some Indian curries can have ground almonds, cashews, apricots etc too and make them rich, fit for special occasions. My recipes on this site only scratch the surface of Indian cuisine, there are so many variations from state to state, house to house and caste to caste (yes this is also true).

When you make your own ?basic? curry sauce, you can vary it a little every time, by adding things like yoghurt, methi/other leaves, additional spices, additional flavours. When making bhajies (dry vegetable dishes), addition of a little garlic/lime/mango or other pickles gives you a pickle like flavour. Using different oils/ghee, like mustard oil, sunflower oil, ghee gives different flavour. Adding a little of ?chat masala? to a dish changes it?s flavour too. Adding pomegranate seeds or ?amchoor? mango powder gives yet another flavour and taste. Different ?tempering? or ?tarka? using cumin/mustard/fennel/nigella/carom/panchpooran seeds gives many more different flavours. Tamarind/saffron/green cardamoms give yet different taste/flavours. Changes are not easy with ready pastes. I suppose you can do it with pastes too, but doing ?a bit of this and a bit of that?, which is the fun of cooking for me, is not possible with ready pastes as easily. They are good, but over spiced in my view, and limited in their approach to cooking. Self cooking has to be inventive, ready for chop and change to suit your taste/mood.

As Lapis says, perhaps maturity is also a factors. Most pickles are better as they get older.

So, pastes and curry powders probably too. They are fine for use now and then or ?add a little of? to your existing home made curry to spice it up, but not for everyday use, at least not for me!

:-) Mamta

Thanks again!

Thank you.

I agree that adding exactly what you want to a dish is what "it's" all about. This is fine for when there's plenty of time BUT for the really pushed for time day's convenience ingredients can be a godsend. I would rate "curry paste" a convenience ingredient and as such use it when needs must. I would always use it as a base flavour, adding other whole spices, maybe even some other spice mixture and ingredients to avoid always having curries that taste the same.

Mamta's point about commercial pastes being too hot is a good one as I've found this to be the case (on the odd occasion's I've used them), also the "additives" can be unwelcome.

Much as I enjoy getting in the kitchen and fiddling around (not only cooking Indian food) when I have time, I think I'll pursue my idea of some ready-made (albeit homemade) paste and spice mixes for the many times cooking is an after work chore to be fitted in around the many other tasks.

I just remembered something; when Kavey was getting married 13 years ago, most of my/my husbands family was here from India/USA, we had a more than full house, with some of them staying with friends. There was a lot of food to be cooked every day. A very good friend of mine made quite a few large pots of curry sauce for me to keep in the fridge, saving me hours of time in the kitchen. She also fried lots of onion/ginger, to be used as needed. These are the things that take time, chopping/frying etc. A very thoughtful gift that was :-)!

Mamta

Very thoughtful indeed Mamta!

I plan to fry a big batch of onion and ginger mixture, devide it into single curry portions and freeze it. As you say, that's what takes the time.

Deb,

if your Husband can't eat garlic, have you tried asafoetida, known as hing. It is used in India by some sects which do not want to eat onions and garlic (Jains and Pandits)

Many people in India do not add onions and garlic to their everyday vegetable dishes, specially dry vegetable bhajies, not just Jains and Pundits. There is tarka and just ginger, that is all.

I do use asafoetida at times though not necessarily as a replacement for garlic. In general there is no problem cooking without it, except of course in a dish where it is a large part of the dish itself (such as chicken kiev!!), as a rule it's omission goes without notice. The problem comes from not being able to use about 99.9999999.....% of ready made stuff as almost everything has garlic in, even things that you wouldn't really expect to find it in - shepherds pie, not a traditional addition, my old mum would never have used garlic in such food.

My Mum was the same, I never knew garlic as a child until a friend cooked a keema type meal, and put some in. As they say, I have never looked back. My Mum didn't like the smell on peoplpe's breath (can't say anyone does) so didn't use garlic, but I put it into some dishes I cooked for her, and she never noticed, or complained. Strange that she loved Worcestershire sauce!

going off the beaten track slightly but I put garlic in almost all the things I make as I love the extra boost of flavour it gives. Don't give two hoots if people smell it on me or my breath... stand back... lol

Steve