Why do we need a base gravy for this dish?
It’s tough to pick the “biggest difference” between British Indian food and “real” Indian cooking – beyond the fact that one has come through the lens of the restaurant industry rather than the homes and street stalls of the subcontinent.
At home, most curries are cooked low and slow – letting the flavors unlock and mix together gently, with the richness of the meat and fat. But in restaurants, we just don’t have time for that. Who’s gonna wait around an hour for a proper curry?
This is where the base gravy comes in. It already has all those slow-cooked flavors and spices but in the handy form of a convenient pre-made sauce that can be added as needed for short cooking.
No two curries are the same…
It can be a little odd talking about food in Malaysia – and Malaysians do love to talk about food. Dishes that are popular in China, such as Lazijiding (dry fried chicken with chili peppers) simply don’t exist here.
The little bottles of black vinegar that are ubiquitous in Chinese restaurants on the mainland are replaced with soy sauce – something that would confuse the hell out of waiters if you ask for it North of the Yangtze.
But the difference that confuses British ex-pats the most is the difference between British Indian cuisine and Malaysian Indian food (which is also different from Indian Indian food, FYI). Names that conjure Friday nights spent with friends in curry houses – Balti, Vindaloo, Rogan Josh, Chicken Tikka – are totally unknown, unless the person you are talking to has been to the UK.
So what to do if you are craving one of those curries and nowhere near a decent curry house? Make it yourself but first, make the base gravy.
