I normally follow one of Mamta's recipes at least three times a week. Very therapeutic to grind up my spices, prepare the meal and know (as a Delia!) the result will be excellent.

Late back from work I bought a jar of Patak's Paste. The result was palatable (apparently even the 'world wide travelled chefs' in Brick Lane just go to the local cash & carry for a catering size jar.)

However the next morning I woke up with a terrible headache (I'd not been drinking!) the flat smelt strange (and me!)

The list of ingredients on the jar seem innocuous except Acetic Aid? Latic Acid?

Sounds a question for Lapis!

At least I have learnt my lesson, just keep to honest home cooked food.

Acetic acid is simply vinegar, nothing scary there...

Sorry to hear about the funny reaction after though!

I can't stand Pataks curry pastes. Yuck. Sorry to hear it made you ill. MSG?

As this is an open forum and the actual product is being named I think I should point out that without hard and fast evidence (through medical studies) we cannot suggest that the conditions you suffered and eating the paste are linked !

I will however say that I always feel rather ill if I've eaten out at restaurant or takeaway and find I get a rather bad tasting garlic repeating on me the next day.

Steve

Thanks all for your comments. I'm still suspicious of an unmentioned ingredient in the paste. However I have learnt my lesson not to cut corners and in future to stick to Mamta's recipes. (Perhaps my palate has become more refined and it was a psychological reaction!)

Will make a jar of curry sauce such as http://www.mamtaskitchen.com/recipe_display.php?id=10139 to keep in reserve. How long will it keep in the fridge?

P.S. If I added some vinegar and perhaps citric acid, sterilized the jars and perhaps used ground rather than fresh coriander would this considerably lengthen the sauce's fridge life?

It will keep for at least a week in the fridge.

One of my good friend had made me 4-5 large jars of it during Kavey's wedding, to cook meals for all the family that had come from India to stay with us. It saved me hours of work, one of the most useful gifts anyone can give at such times!

You can freeze portions.

Mamta

Ooh mum, I didn't know that, who was that from? How thoughtful.

Pataks make quality foodstuffs. Though I have never tried their curry paste but their pickles are smashing albeit limited in variety.

Rajneesh, they are very popular and I have many excellent reports on their curry pastes/ sauces and their pickles/ accompaniments.

:)

It was Bajaj aunty.

mum

We get them in tins and sometimes glass jars. The trick to these I find is to do your usual frying of the onion and ginger & garlic pastes. Then add the spice paste and let it fry. Then add the meat and fry some more till meat is browned. Add salt if desired and cover and cook on a very low heat for atleast 45mins to 1 hr. Check every 10-15mins to make sure the curry is not getting dry or sticking. Stir and add some water if this is the case. I find that this variety of curry paste requires that extra cooking time to get the raw taste and smell out. Otherwise its a passable alternative when in a rush.

Dont want to sound like a curry snob, but I dont think I would ever buy a jar or tin of pataks to make a curry again! I liken it to my other hobby of making beer, that I am passionate about. I used to buy to kits in tins, add water and yeast and ferment. I thought they were ok I guess. Now I make my beer from scratch. Its called "All grain". I select the grain that I want to use, mash it in water at a certain temp, extract the liquid (wort), boil it and add hops at varying times (for bittering, flavour and aroma). Basically what im saying is once you've made it from scratch from your recipe (or someone elses). You would never go back to the pre-made stuff.

Cheers

Steve

A mentioned above, acetic acid is the one found in vinegar, at about the 5% level. It is a metabolite found in the body (especially after drinking alcohol!) so I don't think this is to blame for any problem. Lactic acid is found in sour milk and yoghurt, it's the lactic acid which provides the acidity in Yoghurt, produced by bacteria feeding on Lactose. Again, this shouldn't be a problem. I don't know what else could be in the jar, I am assuming it was freshly open.

Also mentioned above is the problem of cause and effect. Its human nature to equate one thing with another, but often without evidence. My best guess would be it was due to something else, not the jar of spices. However, keeping spices wet is not a good idea, as, sealed in a jar, ?organisms could multiply.

As has been said, would it be best just to rely on the old tried and tested methods? Jars/tins of things are usually fine, but they are not a substitute for the real deal, are they?