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The Worst Mistakes People Make When Cooking Curry

The Worst Mistakes People Make When Cooking Curry

You really don't need all those tomatoes

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers

If you've ever attempted to make your own curry, you will know how hard it can be; rather than the flavourful dish that you set out to achieve, what you're left with is often a bowl of spicy mush.

Well, chef Monica Sawhney Haldar, who runs the Spice Club in Manchester and shares her skills on YouTube, has come to show you the error of your ways and to save your tastebuds from further trauma.

Speaking to LADbible, the tutor has explained the biggest, and often very simple, mistakes people make when attempting a curry and has given her top tips for making sure it's packed full of flavour.

The Spice Club

1. Onions

Monica says: "A lot of people don't spend time browning onions. So they'll chuck the onions in the pan, sauté them for a couple of minutes, and then they'll start adding the other ingredients.

"But really you should be spending 10-15 minutes just on the onions, allowing the sugars to caramelise naturally, because that's what's going to add so much flavour to your curry."


The Spice Club

2. Tomatoes

"A tin of tomatoes can make a curry for 12 to 15 people. A lot people add it because it makes it look like a curry, but it just ends up diluting the flavour and you end up with something that just tastes spicy and very tomatoey.

"If I'm cooking for four people, I'll probably use passata, because most of the work is done for you, and then I only use around four to five tablespoons.

The Spice Club

3. Salt

"You can add all the spices that you want to a dish, but if you don't add salt, it's never going to work. It's criminal.

"Make sure you're adding salt while cooking and tasting it as you go along. A lot of people just cook the dish and then don't taste it until they sit down at the table."

4. Spices

"You need to keep your spices in an air-tight container to make sure that they're potent and flavourful.

"People often keep them in the tubs or bags that they bought them in and just tie a rubber band around them. If it's left long enough, this causes it to lose its flavour.

"Also, only buy as much as you need."

The Spice Club

5. Freezing

"To cut down on time, I like to prep things like ginger, garlic, chili and coriander. So I wash them and blitz them in a food processor, and freeze them or put them in a container.

"A good tip is to put them in a sandwich bag and tap them down until they're flat. That way you can just break off shards when you need them rather than having to break up a block of it every time you need some."

So there you have it. Now you've got no excuse for making a bang average curry.

Featured Image Credit: The Spice Club

Topics: Cooking, India