Stokes Sauces: National Curry Week - three simple, tasty Indian Curries

National Curry Week

http://www.stokessauces.co.uk/page/sauces/ketchup-and-sauces

The word 'curry' was invented by British colonialists in the 18th century. Most likely a take on the Indian word 'kari', meaning sauce or gravy.

Within the broad range of dishes gathered below the umbrella term - curry - there's usually something for everyone. Meat, fish, vegetables; mild, warm, hot and 'daft'.

If you like your curries, but need an excuse to have one, National Curry Week runs from 22nd to 28th October and should be all the excuse you need.

Takeaway, delivered, dining out or cooking in? There is another avenue that works. Most supermarkets have ready meals offering 'authentic Indian flavours'. A lot of them are pretty good on their own - but - can be made even better in moments:

The next time you buy one, tip it into a pan, add natural yogurt, garam masala and Stokes Curry Ketchup (or Stokes Tomato Ketchup and 1 tbsp of Curry Powder). Let this simmer for no more than 20 minutes. This gives you more, thicker gravy, enhances the taste, and softens the meat.

Cobra & papadums ready - let's cook

Lamb Rogan Josh

You'll need:

1 bunch coriander, leaves chopped and stalks reserved
1 tbsp of Stokes Chilli Jam
3 tbsp of Stokes Curry Ketchup
2 tsp coriander seeds, ground
2 tsp cumin seeds, ground
2 tbsp of garam masala
5 cardamom pods, seeds only, ground
2 onions, chopped
600g lamb steak, cut into large chunks
3 cloves of garlic, grated
1 tbsp of grated ginger
4 tomatoes, quartered
100g natural yogurt

Here's how:

Blend the coriander stalks, chilli jam, spices and ketchup to a paste. Fry the onions until soft, then add the garlic ginger, cardamom and lamb.

Cook the lamb, turning frequently for 5 minutes to brown the outside. Now stir in the wet spice paste, cooking it through for a further 5 minutes.

Pour 400 ml of water into the pan, stir, cover and simmer for 45 minutes on a low heat.

Add the yogurt, tomatoes and coriander leaves, stir and cook for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and let it rest.

The longer you leave it, the better it is.

Salmon Curry

Here's how:

Make a curry paste as above but adding the juice of 1 lime (if you don't have Stokes Curry Ketchup, add curry powder to Stokes Tomato Ketchup to taste).

Thoroughly coat 1 skinless salmon per person with the paste and let it marinate for an hour.

For a simple Turmeric Rice follow the rule of twice the water to rice. In this case 600 ml of chicken stock to 300 g of Basmati rice. First fry 1 diced onion with 1 grated garlic clove, 1 tsp of ground cumin and 1 tsp of turmeric.

Now add the rice, stirring for 2 or 3 minutes to absorb the flavours. Add the stock, bring it to the boil, then cover and turn the heat off. Don't touch it or lift the lid for 20 minutes.

Lift the lid and fluff the rice up with a fork, season and reserve. Put the salmon steaks on an oiled baking sheet then into a very hot oven for 6 minutes, turning once half way. You are looking for a scorched outside and very moist, just-cooked flaky inside.

Serve it on the turmeric rice with a cucumber raita. Simply slice cucumber into plain yogurt with a teaspoon of Stokes Mint Sauce. This is a light curry with bags of flavour.

Bhuna Chicken

You'll need:

3 skinless chicken breast fillets, cubed
3 onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, grated
1 tbsp of grated ginger
3 tomatoes, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tbsp of Stokes Chilli Jam
3 tbsp of Stokes Curry Ketchup
1 tbsp of Stokes Classic English Mustard
1 tbsp of medium curry powder
1 tsp of coriander, ground
1 tsp cumin, ground
1 lime, juice only
1 tbsp of garam masala
a bunch or coriander leaves, chopped

Here's how:

Cook the chicken pieces (a few at a time) to brown them all over, then set aside.

In the same pan, cook the onion, garlic and ginger for several minutes until the onion has softened. Add all the spices, chilli jam, mustard and ketchup cooking for 5 minutes before adding the tomatoes, covering and reducing the heat for 5 minutes more.

Put the chicken and juices back in the pan with the garam masala and lime juice, stirring everything well together.

If you feel it needs a little water to increase the gravy, do so now. Bring the heat up and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the coriander, cover and set the curry aside for the flavours to get to know each other.

Make Autumn Awesome - just add Stokes