Some of the Indian curry recipes on this website list an ingredient called curry base. Curry base is a somewhat thin, stock-like sauce typically consisting of onions, tinned tomatoes, ginger, garlic, spices, oil and water. There are probably as many variations of curry base as there are cooks who make it, and the recipe shown below is for my version. Although curry base, also known as base gravy, is typically synonymous with British Indian Restaurant (BIR) curries, BIR style curries are not the types of curries that I'm trying to replicate on this website. I know there are lots of people who enjoy BIR curries, and if you're one such person then there are plenty of websites and YouTube channels out there solely devoted to that style of cooking.
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Curry Base
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The Indian curries and curry base that I make are not cooked in the same way as BIR versions. Indian restaurants and takeaways use base gravy for convenience so they can cook individual portions of curry much faster, whereas the reason why I sometimes use it is because I find that tinned tomatoes on their own can make some curries too rich. The recipe shown below makes 2-litres of curry base, which is enough to make four of the curries listed on this website that call for it in the ingredients list.
Fragrant Stock Ingredients:
- 500ml cold water
- 10 green cardamoms, cracked
- 8 cloves
- 1-inch piece cassia bark, broken into several smaller pieces
- 1 tablespoon oil
- Hot water
Method:
1. Place the cold water, green cardamoms, cloves, cassia bark and oil into a saucepan.
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Curry Base - Fragrant Stock - Step 1
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2. Cover and bring to the boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently with the lid slightly ajar for 45 minutes.
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Curry Base - Fragrant Stock - Step 2
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3. After 45 minutes, there will be approximately 200–300ml of stock remaining in the pan. Pass the stock though a fine sieve and discard the whole spices.
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| Curry Base - Fragrant Stock - Step 3 |
4. Add a sufficient amount of hot water to the stock to make the total volume up to 800ml and then set aside.
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| Curry Base - Fragrant Stock - Step 4 |
Note: The stock turns brown due to tannins being released from the cassia bark. This is perfectly normal and is nothing to be concerned about.
Curry Base Ingredients:
- 7 tablespoons oil
- 20g peeled garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 20g peeled ginger, finely chopped
- 10g curry powder (see notes)
- 5g turmeric
- 5g paprika
- 2g garam masala
- 2 teaspoons kasoori methi (optional)
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 400g blended plum tinned tomato
- 600g peeled onion, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 150g de-seeded red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 150g de-seeded green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 8g fresh coriander (leaves and stems), roughly chopped (optional)
- Hot water
Method:
1. Heat the oil in a deep, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and fry, stirring constantly to prevent sticking, for about 8–10 minutes or until the aroma of raw garlic has disappeared. Keep a jug of cold water handy to control the temperature of the oil and to stop it from heating up too much. The garlic and ginger needs to be cooked quite slowly and it should not turn brown. If the oil is too hot the garlic and ginger will cook too quickly and turn brown and this may impart a bitter taste to the curry base.
After adding the garlic and ginger to the pot and giving it a stir, add a small splash of cold water to reduce the oil temperature slightly. You only need to add about 2 teaspoons of water at a time, and definitely no more than a tablespoon. The idea is to fry the garlic and ginger while there is a small amount of water present, which helps to control the oil temperature. When the water has evaporated the sizzling will increase and the sound will change. This is an indication of when to add a little more water. Keep cooking the garlic and ginger in this way for about 8–10 minutes until the aroma of raw garlic has disappeared.
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Curry Base - Step 1
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2. Add the curry powder, turmeric, paprika, garam masala, kasoori methi (if using) and salt. Mix well and fry, stirring constantly to prevent sticking, for 2–3 minutes. This process blooms the spices and allows them to release all of their lovely flavours into the oil. Once again, keep a jug of cold water handy, and using the same method described above, add a small splash of cold water to the pot to control the temperature of the oil. It's very important that the spices don't burn or they will impart a bitter flavour into the curry base.
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Curry Base - Step 2
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3. Add the blended plum tinned tomato and mix well.
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Curry Base - Step 3
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4. Fry the mixture for 8–10 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent sticking, until it turns a shade darker and the oil starts to separate.
Note: This step can be very messy, so it's advisable to cover your cooker and any nearby work surfaces with old newspaper and to keep a dishcloth and some hot soapy water to hand. This is why I recommend using a deep cooking pot because it helps to reduce the amount of splashing. I also recommend using a long-handled wooden spoon or similar utensil to save your hands from getting splashed when stirring the mixture.
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Curry Base - Step 4
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5. Add the onion, red and green bell pepper pieces and fresh coriander (if using). Mix well and cook, stirring often to prevent sticking, for about 2–3 minutes.
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Curry Base - Step 5
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6. Add the fragrant stock and mix well.
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Curry Base - Step 6
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7. Bring the mixture to a steady simmer over medium heat and then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer gently for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
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Curry Base - Step 7
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8. After 1 hour, remove the pot from the heat and blend the mixture until absolutely smooth. This step is very important. There should be no vegetable pieces remaining. Once thoroughly blended, the mixture will have a smooth, soup-like consistency.
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Curry Base - Step 8
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9. Carefully transfer the mixture into a measuring vessel. The volume will be less than 2-litres. Add a sufficient amount of hot water to the curry base to make the total volume up to 2-litres and then mix thoroughly.
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Curry Base - Step 9
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10. Portion the mixture into 500ml batches, and once cooled either refrigerate or freeze.
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Curry Base - Step 10
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Notes:
- The curry base will last for up to 5 days in the refrigerator if kept covered. However, if you don't plan on using it all straight away then the remaining portions should be frozen.
- If you live in the UK and you're planning to purchase bell peppers from a supermarket try and find the wonky peppers. These peppers usually have a much better flavour than the mixed peppers sold in bags of three.
- The recipe calls for 10g of curry powder. I make my own curry powder, but if you don't make your own then you can just purchase it instead. Whether you use mild, medium or hot curry powder is entirely your choice, but personally I would recommend using mild curry powder when making curry base.
- The recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of kasoori methi. Kasoori methi is dried fenugreek leaves. If you're unable to get hold of this ingredient then just omit it from the recipe.
