[Music] garam masala kasuri medsi ghee learning to make curry properly may feel like learning a new language but keep watching and you'll be fluent before you know it we can all agree that onions are a versatile vegetable and a must-have in the kitchen they are one of the fundamental ingredients to making a delicious Curry and cooking them correctly is just as important many recipe directions for making Curry call for sautang onions turning them a beautiful translucent color and making them soft enough to incorporate easily into the curry while this basic instruction may be adequate for pros it might be too vague for amateur home Cooks so you might end up with a batch of undercooking your onions or burning them to a crisp to cook them down perfectly you'll start by cutting your onions make sure you Dice them uniformly then add a pinch of salt to de-moisten them so they soften quickly add oil butter or a bit of both to a pan and leave them to heat up next add your onions on medium heat as they start to simmer turn the heat on low and cover the pan as they cook you can add a splash of water if they are sticking to the surface next remove the cover and let the onions cook on medium heat for a minute or two until they look transparent enough you'll find these sauteed onions to have a sweetly mellow flavor that complements your mouth watering curry cooking them just right makes all the difference in the world if you are unfamiliar with ghee we'll give you a bit of background ghee is a staple in most Indian cuisines if you've had Indian takeaway your taste buds know what we're talking about ghee is basically clarified butter drained from milk proteins and water and it's perfect for adding that nutty buttery flavor to your dish making it a fundamental component of flavoring your Curry if you're failing to replicate the curry that you've had in your favorite Indian restaurant the key ingredient you're missing is probably ghee while oil may work it will lack the texture that ghee adds plus it also works differently than other vegetable oils this ingredient is a perfect medium to work with as it soaks up all the flavor of spices and we know Curry has a lot of spices in its list of ingredients if you love butter and want to cook it up at a high temperature use ghee this is because unlike butter ghee doesn't burn at high temperatures and won't taste unpleasant as you crank up the temperature on your Curry per a user on Reddit the difference between oil and ghee is like night and day the latter enhancing the flavors of a spicy dish tenfold Curry is one of those magical dishes that transforms into an out of this world Cuisine overnight giving Curry a chance to settle reveals its full range of flavor and its potential to wow us increases infinitely giving you a little taste of heaven with every Spoonful however no spell or incantation is recited to make this happen all of Curry's components work together to bring out the fresh flavors bursting with Savory spicy deliciousness the spices and hidden sweets blend together in Perfect Harmony inside my mouth so why does a little extra time help Curry taste even better why it's simply the magic of marination we all know meat needs time to soak up flavors as the spices are in contact with the meat all the flavor is absorbed giving you a real kick of flavor that is less sharp but more palatable Additionally the protein has a chance to break down relax and become a part of the delicious Curry as it rests after being exposed to heat also the amino acids and sugar molecules in the food interact with each other and caramelize all of which contribute to the Umami flavor of the meat when left overnight the spices in the curry have time to infuse allowing the sharpest of flavors to mellow out and these subtle flavors to become more pronounced you can usually keep curry in the fridge for two to three days and reheat it on the stovetop as crucial as ink is to a pen so too is the right cut of beef for a curry the wrong cut of beef can result in a curry full of chunks of meat with the consistency of erasers or cuts of beef so thin that will ultimately dissolve into nothingness it is imperative that you choose a cut that goes with the cooking time of of the curry so which cut of beef is the right cut well that would be none other than the chuck steak which is derived from the shoulders of the cow this lean piece of beef has a lot of collagen low fat on the surface and decent marbling this results in a curry brimming with flavor you can also use yogurt to marinate your meat to help tenderize it a Reddit user suggests doing a double marinade when cooking with tough meats you can first marinate the meat with yogurt chili powder and turmeric and refrigerate it for a day and then add ginger garlic and green chili paste and marinate for another four hours or so some people also recommend incorporating raw papaya into the marinade as well while adding salt to any dish may seem as simple as sprinkling it in when one feels like it one can't be so Cavalier when adding salt to Curry making Curry can be painstaking and it would be a real travesty if you were to botch it up by being haphazard with the salt but what happens if you've jumped the gun and added too much salt already well don't panic because there are some ways to salvage it one thing you can do is try adding pieces of raw potato to the dish this will absorb the excess salt within 30 minutes you can also place a dough ball in the curry and bring it to a boil for three to four minutes this will improve the flavor of your curry in addition to removing the Surplus salt another solution would be adding a blend of sugar and vinegar if both are added together with just a tablespoon each it will help neutralize the overwhelming Taste of salt raw onions can also negate the taste of excess salt and saltiness it's not uncommon that in pursuit of the perfect Curry consistency one might end up adding too much water into the dish this results in a runny Curry and dilutes the seasoning making it taste Bland and boring while it's ultimately a matter of preference as Some people prefer a thicker Curry While others like it a bit more runny that said too much of anything can ruin the dish but let's say you really beefed it and added too much water the most effective way to treat this is to simmer the curry to cook off the liquid but that takes a great deal of time we don't have time for that if you're in need of a quicker solution yogurt might be the miracle ingredient you're looking for you can use it to thicken the curry adding a rich and creamy taste or you can add some thickening agents like corn flour or rice flour to avoid the lumps in your Curry mix the flour in water first and whisk it well before adding it if you are going to add rice just mix it in and voila the curry won't even lose its nutrients or flavor using tomatoes to thicken the texture won't significantly alter the flavor of the curry either put a tiny bit of tomato paste or tomato puree in the mix making sure to add a small amount at a time until the curry reaches the desired thickness if you like it then you should have put a lid on it if you like your Curry to have an amazing flavor and delectable consistency it's best to cook it with a lid the reason you should keep the lid on is to retain the heat in the pot especially if you're simmering your spices or bringing the curry to a boil covering the pan saves time energy and effort also it works super well in helping to integrate all the flavors of the curry furthermore if you want to maintain the consistency of the curry as well as cook the meat simultaneously it's best to leave your pan covered keeping your pan covered allows the moisture to break down the collagen and connective tissues to give you juicy tender meat that will go really well with your Curry did you know there is a certain order of operations that must be adhered to when preparing Curry that's right you can't just put everything in cross your fingers and pray it comes out smelling like heaven and tasting like the most delicious curry in the world to make any Curry much less a perfect one there is a particular sequence an arrangement of sorts to add the spices and ingredients you must work and prepare it step by step or you'll be charged with culinary blasphemy first toss your spices in sizzling hot oil the reason they go in first is that it takes time for whole spices to warm up and release their flavor as compared to the ground ones the ground spices on the other hand are pretty quick to incorporate into the curry next goes in turmeric followed by some wet ingredients like vegetables lastly you can add other types of ground spices like chili powder garam masala and kasuri medsi are best added later to top off the dish and so that they retain their lovely Aromas as stated earlier you always want to add garam masala toward the end rather than at the start of cooking garam masala is a mashup of our favorite whole spices like black pepper bay leaf cardamom and cinnamon it's a great way to add complexity and depth to your food and it significantly enhances the flavor profile of your Curry but why is it added toward the end garam masala is added later to preserve the aroma of the spices you'd think that adding it before would probably give it time to infuse the flavors properly in the curry but you couldn't be more wrong it would actually tone down the depth of the flavors conversely adding them just before serving elevates the flavor of the dish since garam masala is a powdered spice it's highly concentrated and works quickly to add flavor to your dish but as with all good things moderation is key make sure not to add too much of it or you'll end up with a bitter tasting Curry just a pinch or two will suffice in order to achieve absolute Curry Perfection you must always roast your spices first roasting whole spices is a tradition followed religiously in most Indian kitchens they bring out a new world of flavors adding depth and richness to your Curry here's how to roast your spices start by heating your pan on a stovetop next add your spices and shake or stir them up so they don't stick to the pan then when they release their fragrance it's safe to take them off the heat a little word to the wise it's better to roast your spices in a well ventilated area otherwise your whole apartment might smell like an Indian restaurant for a week which depending on who you ask may be a very good or bad thing foreign
