Finally, Australia can get a decent curry - delivered!

[Erik Snyman]

Oh dear! What a shame you have only eaten such poor quality Indian food. I too have had to walk out of an Indian restaurant after being served sad, boiled lumps of chicken floating in a thin gruel harshly spiced with raw chilli powder, all too obviously microwaved to order. Inedible, and yet the place was full of people apparently enjoying this travesty of a great cuisine.In fact, there is no such thing as just 'Indian cuisine'. Every region has its own distinct traditions. different meats, spices, herbs, vegetables, & methods of cooking feature depending on which region of the vast Indian continent the meal originates from.

 

A true curry is prepared from individual spices, often freshly dry roasted before being ground & used at the time of cooking. Some meals need marinating for a few hours, but other than that a good curry will be prepared fresh on the day. No artificial colours or flavours are ever used in a proper curry: they simply aren't required because of the colourful mix of ingredients and the superb taste of a minimum of 4 or 5 spices, but often 15 or 20 herbs & spices used in a single dish.

 

Fresh vegetables figure strongly, and the Indians have an almost infinite number of ways of cooking them. Ditto fish, prawns, etc, but it is not strictly against the Hindu faith to eat meat. Goat meat features strongly in Indian cooking, & it does curry very well. Hindus are forbidden beef, & Muslims pork.

 

I do urge you not to write off this ancient, varied & infinitely rewarding treasurehouse of seductive spiced food. I strongly believe there could be very, very few people who would honestly prefer tinned pap & ersatz 'spaghetti' to a well prepared dish of proper Indian curry.

 

Trust me, you are missing out on one of the best of all cuisines if you judge all curries on the basis of a few badly mass produced rubbish offerings. I blame the people who are prepared to pay for such insults to the palate with folding money: just say no!

 

Incidentally, I'm not Indian, but have been an avid amateur curry cook for over 30 years. Done well, it's food of the gods, in my book.

 

Bruce

Bruce,

I absolutely agree with you. My father-in-law is German born and raised, and he lives in Durban, South Africa, the home of a multitude of Indians. He cooks the most divine curries, from recepies (sp?) given to him by the Indians working for him. Delicious.

 

Erik in Oz.

 

 

[onetrack]

I don't mind a good curry - it's just that the overwhelming advance of el-cheapo Indian eateries locally, with their poor offerings, has put me off any form of Indian food from any eatery specialising in it.

 

It seems to me, to be a race to the bottom locally, as to who can produce the worst Indian food from their cafe or restaurant, using the cheapest and nastiest ingredients, and hiding what is in the meal.

 

I'm quite happy to make my own curries - and even my own curry powder. Unfortunately, my better half has a severe aversion to chilli in any form - because it adversely affects her arthritis in a big way. And a lot of curry powder contains chilli.

 

Fortunately, I did a little research, and found a great recipe for making my own curry powder, without chilli as an ingredient. It makes a nice flavoursome curry without the dreaded savage chilli "bite".

 

And that's another angle about hot foods that annoys me - the chefs who think there's no food on the planet that can't be cooked without a major handful of chilli included. All you can taste is throat-burning, eye watering chilli, nothing else.

 

My greatest rage is reserved for those food preparers who produce meals such as Barramundi - flavoured with chilli!! For crying out loud, Barra needs no flavouring additions, the delicate flavour is to be enjoyed without the addition of any flavouring!

 

There are definitely bland foods and flavourless fish species, that do need the addition of spices and sauces to improve their flavour - but premium fish is not one of them.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Well, after a successful outing in the tin dish with my son today (15 nice sized flatties) I'm currently deep frying fillets in a beer batter, while the home made chips are cooking in the oven.

 

Sometimes it's the simple things!

 

 

[Phil Perry]

We are incredibly lucky in that a Local Corner Shop owner, with whose children went to school with my two Daughters,. . ., prepares herbs and spices so that I can make my own Indian meals. She is a Sikh, Her Husband died of cancer 3 years ago, and even before then, she used to prepare ingredients with specific cooking instructions for a complete meal, even down to preparing a marinade for our chicken or other meats. . . . My Sister in Law walks across the road and regularly avails herself of this freely provided service. There is also a Newsagent / general store up near where Younger Daughter lives at the other end of town, who makes and actually sells fully prepared home made curries from that location. . they really ARE very, very good. . . .She remarks regularly that there is far too much Ghee in 'Restaurant' meals. . . .She hands out extra chillies for those who like things a little hot. . . .

 

 

[Phil Perry]

'bout the same time I was getting my takeaway from Prahran, then ?

 

Was he snagged by CASA? I'll get me 'at and coat; and glass of Penfolds Koonunga (makes a change from Wolfie)...

 

My Good Lady reminded me that we used to travel to Burwood,. . .from Boronia ( Long way, said she ! ) as there was a really Good curry house there, I think it was called The King's Castle or something like that,. . .BYO licensed and EXCELLENT Indian food, the last time we went was the same day as the Solar Eclipse, which darkened the Melbourne skies for a short while in the Mid 1970s. . .it's probably a dollar shop now. . .

 

Incidentally, I realise that this is a fairly Old post, but Wifey keeps sneaking up behind me in her carpet slippers to see what rubbish I am posting, and I happened to be perusing this thread. . .

 

 

[turboplanner]

Box Hill is a Chinese enclave now, so you can dine out on great food for less than $20.00 now, Mount Waverley is a Hong Kong investment precinct, so I would think Burwood would go that way also.

 

 

[old man emu]

 

 

 

 

[horsefeathers]

Best curry EVER was from the Jeera Tandoori on Hayling Island (near Portsmouth in England)

 

It's that good, that I'm going back in May for some more

 

 

[Phil Perry]

Best curry EVER was from the Jeera Tandoori on Hayling Island (near Portsmouth in England)

It's that good, that I'm going back in May for some more

Have not been to Hayling Island since 1968. . . . So Don't recall that one. . . we had a Good one in West Brom, opened while I was still at school in 1964 . . .

 

 

[yampy]

My all time favourite is the Rajpoot in Cotteridge , Birmingham UK . It’s a bit of a jaunt from here , but I always pay a visit or two when over there. The gaffer there thinks I live locally , I’ve never had the nerve to tell him I’m on a visit . I’ve never  a good curry in Australia , I’m hoping to before I fall off the perch . There seems to be a habit of putting carrots and peas in them and either like a furnace or no spice at all , never just right . The absolute worst I’ve ever had was in South Yarra , Melbourne , I’m still recovering . I think I’m due for a trip to the Rajpoot , doesn’t need much of an excuse for a trip back these days . Happy Curry munching one and all .

 

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

I was at Brick Lane today, and my has it changed - very fancy-dancy.. But there is one curry take-away still going strong - the queue outside for lunch was longer and there were more people buying from them than the fancy-dancy bistros around it combined...

 

I am going to hurt tomorrow ;-)

 

 

[horsefeathers]

I was at Brick Lane today, and my has it changed - very fancy-dancy.. But there is one curry take-away still going strong - the queue outside for lunch was longer and there were more people buying from them than the fancy-dancy bistros around it combined...

I am going to hurt tomorrow ?

I'm off to London in June, and Brick Lane is on our list.  What's the name of said curry emporium? I am always on the lookout for a great recommendation 

 

 

[yampy]

Forget the fancy - dancy  joints and head to Birmingham , the curry capital of the UK . The “ Balti Triangle “ is an area chocker block full of curry houses . My recommendation is Akrams in Stirchley , top tucker .

 

 

[Yenn]

It is not only Indian food, but all food served in restaurants seems to bee getting poorer. I had rabbit in a restaurant in Beechworth and I am damn sure it was not rabbit. I wanted the flavour I remember from before I came to Qld, where rabbit is impossible to come by. I had fish in a restaurant at Lakes Entrance, lousy potatoes.

 

Back to the old pub lunch for a decent meal, cooked by people who know how to cook, rather than the pretentious chefs of a restaurant.

 

 

[old man emu]

. I had rabbit in a restaurant in Beechworth and I am damn sure it was not rabbit.

Miouw, miouw type rabbit?

 

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

 - I dom't know what it is called; When I ext go there, - will let you know. (I now work at Canary Wart - not the City).

 

If you've got time in June, let me know and if the peices of the jigsaw fall into place, will take you up from the 'Bushe...

 

 

[Kyle Communications]

Plenty of rabbits at my farm just down the road from you Yenn..arent you near Gladstone?

 

Might have to start shooting them they are starting to dig under the water tanks and concrete of the hangar and shed.

 

Great curry place about 1km from here in Burpengary....we get their takeaway regularly. They even sell their sauce...I love making currys..I buy a litre of their Korma sauce and make up my own...freeze them for our meals...

 

 

[old man emu]

Shooting around hangars and water tanks is dangerous. Better ferret out another method.

 

 

[pmccarthy]

A rabbit shot out in front of me when I was taxying. Dont know where he got the rifle.

 

 

[Phil Perry]

Shooting around hangars and water tanks is dangerous. Better ferret out another method.

We had an Irish Guy,. . who specialised in sorting Bunny infestations,. . they were undermining our portakabins. . He used a .22 rifle for the awkward ones, and the Airfield Manager allowed him to do that since the man was an ex RAF Herc pilot, who understood that thin skinned aircraft did not like being shot. . . but his Main weapons were Ferrets, nets and Jack Russell dogs.   He did the job anyhow, and word must've gota round as the Bunnies have not returned. . . He squirted Ferret Urine into the burrows,. .. apparently, this has a similar effect to leaving Lion Sh!t to deter larger creatures in other localities. . . .

 

 

[Kyle Communications]

Shooting around hangars and water tanks is dangerous. Better ferret out another method.

I am not that bad of a shot  ? 

 

The rabbits though live in a big pile of old trees that pretty soon will be burnt off this winter coming..I expect to see rabbits fleeing everywhere

 

 

[old man emu]

Actually, that idea of spraying urine around rabbit warrens is not unusual. As long as the urine comes from a meat eater, it will give rabbits cause for concern. If you use herbivore's urine, you'll only attract them. There's many an old granny who kept the rabbits off her veggie patch by emptying her guzunter around its borders every morning. If you want a good supply of deterrent urine, throw a barbie and ask your mates to piss in a bucket.

 

 

[onetrack]

I'd really like to know how you go about harvesting ferret urine on a commercial scale? - in volumes enough to squirt down a hundred rabbit burrows?  In my experience, the rabbits would just promptly dig some new burrows!

 

In a previous life, I was an agricultural earthmoving contractor, with several Cat D7 dozers. A regular job I carried out for farmers was ripping rabbit burrows with the D7 rear-mounted ripper.

 

It was very satisfying, running over rabbit burrows with a 25 tonne crawler tractor, and then dropping the 3-shank ripper in, to it's full 800mm depth, and turning their cosy homes into a wasteland of soft dirt that collapsed onto them - and which they almost never managed to dig their way out of.

 

One farmer, who was obviously consumed with rabbit hatred, told me how he had a pile of enduring rabbits living in a heap of dirt and sticks and trash - and one warm day he set fire to the heap.

 

He was also obviously a vicious, vengeful bastard - because he said, the rabbits tried to flee the flames, and he reckoned he enjoyed the sound of squealing rabbits on fire, dying in the paddock by the dozens.

 

I guess the RSPCA would hang him by the gonads if they found out he did that, to lovely harmless little furry critters, today.

 

It's not until you see the total destruction of the Agricultural areas of Australia, by overwhelming numbers of rabbits, do you get an idea of the depth of rabbit hatred amongst farmers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[turboplanner]

If you want to get rid of rabbits without shooting them try this: