It's coming, it's coming, keep your shirt on! It's Saturday, so there will absolutely be a loaf in the near future, but in the meantime, don't you want to know how to create your very own curry?
Now, I'm not going to knock the store bought , pre-made curry powders. They are a fun way to start experimenting with your taste buds and heat tolerance. Here's a great trick to make the store bought brands your very own: READ THE LABEL. Generally, labels don't give you the specifics when it comes to "secret ingredients" however, they will give you the gist of the flavor profiles. Once read, you can play with the different high notes in the curry base to make it your own. Here's how I would tackle the curry powder I just pulled out of the cabinet, it reads:
INGREDIENTS: Spices (duh) (including CORIANDER, CUMIN, CHILI PEPPER, RED PEPPER, and CARDAMOM), and Sulfur Dioxide (added as a preservative)
... and that last little bit we can do without, unless of course you want to keep your curry powder in the back of the spice rack for about six months, crying in a corner, thinking no one loves it. Why do you want to be mean like that?
I digress, back to shaking up your store bought powder! So, by the label, the big hitters here are Coriander and Cumin. Now, go to your spice cabinet and sniff out these two buggers. You will find that Coriander has a mild nutmeg meets a pepper kind of thing going on, and Cumin is the unmistakable spicy, savory flavor found in a ton of Mexican dishes, and abundantly available in the fajita you had during happy hour last night! Next up we have the mighty pepper duo of Chili and Red. Chili is a milder heat, think of it as Red Pepper's wing man. He prepares you for Red's presence, warms you up, gets you in a good mood, but doesn't crowd you or a make too strong a move. Then once you're primed, Red steps in for the POW!!!! Those pepper guys, They'll get you every time. Lastly, we have Cardamom. Cardamom is our bouncer. He's much deeper than what he appears on the surface, and he just kind of keeps everybody in check. When you open a jar of Cardamom and take a big whiff, it automatically gives off a menthol scent, clearing the sinuses right up! If you can handle another whiff, you'll notice a savory and sweet note in the background, alerting you that this spice is much more that just an afterthought. It plays well with others. It blends, it enhances, but no one is going to stand out and start any kind of frat boy fighting stuff while Cardamom is around!
Now for the twist, I like my curry sweet and hot, so I would add more Cumin, Ancho Chile Powder, Smoked Paprika, a touch of Ginger and a little bit of Cinnamon. The hubby likes the tangy stuff, so for him I'll kick up this curry with a little ground Mustard and Turmeric. The Boys are very adventurous for their ages, but I don't want to scar them for life, so for them I would play up the sweetness of the Cardamom with a little Nutmeg, Cinnamon and Clove.
Are you catching on? It's like a puzzle really. Find the flavor in the curry that you want to accentuate, and play off of it until your taste buds sing!
If you are ready to try from scratch, give this one a whirl:
CURRY IN A HURRY
1 Tablespoon each Ground Turmeric, Ground Cumin, Ground Mustard, Ground Coriander
1/2 Tablespoon each Ancho Chile Powder, Smoked Paprika, Ground Red Pepper, Ground Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon each Ground Ginger, Ground Clove, Ground Cardamom, Freshly Grated Nutmeg
Stir these together well
Add Salt and Pepper as you go if you'd like
Quick fix: For you Carnivores, use half of this powder as a rub on your meat, sweat some lovely veggies in vegetable oil and dust in the remaining powder. Add your meat and a little bit of stock, simmer and cook through.
For my Vegetarian fiends, I mean friends, sweat out your favorite veggies in a little vegetable oil, dust in some powder, find a nice starchy veg such as cauliflower or some form of spud, chop it, drop it and dust it. Add to your pot with a touch of either veggie stock or water (go for the stock!), simmer and cook through.
A side note...Curry tastes great with nuts. Try some pistachios to really give yourself a textural explosion with your next curry!
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