The Stupidest Mistakes People Make When Preparing a Curry
A deliciously spicy curry, full of flavour and colour—that’s what you have in mind, and that’s what the cookbook promises. So why does it end up in your pan as a sloppy mess with nothing recognisable floating in it? Indian curry expert Monica Sawhney Haldar gives you four mistakes and a smart practical tip.
Ugh! A watery curry on your plate
Because how hard can a curry really be? You pour some coconut milk into a pan, spoon in a dollop of curry paste, throw in some chicken and vegetables, and you’re done, right? No. Nope. Never. What you end up with is the kind of curry served at the average lunch café: watery, bland, and with vegetables that look suspiciously like a pre-cut stir-fry mix from a bag.
Mistakes people make when preparing curry
So why is it still so difficult to make a truly good curry? Here’s a brief overview of the culinary obstacle course:
Mistake 1: rushing the onions
People chop an onion, toss it into the hot pan, stir-fry it briefly until translucent, and then add the rest of the ingredients. Wrong, says Monica. ‘Let the onions cook for at least ten minutes over low heat. They’ll become soft, brown and sweet. That creates an amazing flavour.’
Mistake 2: using canned tomatoes
Many people add a can of tomatoes to their curry. Not a good idea, because according to Monica it makes the curry watery and far too tomato-heavy. ‘When I make curry for four people, I usually use passata, a thick tomato sauce. And I only add four or five tablespoons, no more.’
Mistake 3: adding no salt (or too little or too late)
Curry is all about balance. Not a matter of life and death, but of sweet, sour, spicy and salty. You can add as many spices as you like, but if you don’t use salt, it’s pointless. Monica: ‘Add salt while cooking, and keep tasting your curry. Many people make the curry and only add salt at the very end, when the curry is already on the table.’ And according to Monica, that’s downright criminal.
Mistake 4: using old spices
A dried-out jar of cinnamon and coriander seeds that have been around since the turn of the century? Get rid of them and buy fresh spices. A tip from the pro: ‘Keep them in airtight containers so they don’t lose their aroma and flavour. Don’t buy too much, because you can’t keep spices indefinitely.’
Tip: make a quick curry from the freezer
Quick curry? Monica has a handy tip: she chops garlic, ginger, chilli and coriander in the food processor and then freezes them, already chopped, in small bags. ‘A small ziplock is fine,’ she says. ‘Fill it with garlic or ginger, flatten it and freeze it. When you’re making curry, take a bag out of the freezer, break off a piece and put it in the pan; the rest can go back in the freezer. That saves time!’
Read also:
- The difference between Thai curries
- How to make a delicious and simple Chinese curry
- Recipe for a divine roasted cauliflower curry
Source: LadBible
