Basic curry sauce - that is actually basic

Trying to outsass /u/Mombo1212

How to cook a basic Indian curry. Heat some oil in a pan on medium-low heat. Add 1 medium onion - finely diced. Add 1 heaped tablespoon finely minced garlic. Cook for 30 minutes until the onion slowly turns brown (caramelizes). The more it caramelizes, the deeper the flavor.

Up the heat to medium. Now add 1 tablespoon finely minced ginger. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 heaped teaspoons coriander powder, 1 heaped teaspoon cumin powder, 1 teaspoon red chili powder or cayenne powder.

Cook for 5 minutes more. This is your curry base. You are done. A lot of Indian curries are actually dry and not saucy. But if you want a curry sauce, add some diced tomatoes and/or tomato paste, and some water to this, cook it for another 15 minutes, and you have a basic curry sauce (i have given more details below).

You can now do a bunch of things. If you are making a veggie like say peas and carrots, or cauliflower or cabbage or bell peppers or eggplant or potatoes or string beans or a mix, throw them into your curry base, add some water, cover with a lid, and let the veggies cook out. Finish with chopped coriander leaves for freshness.

Optional stuff:

If you want to make this more saucy, add 2 diced large tomatoes to the curry base before you add the veggies. Cook out the tomatoes until they dry out and until the oil separates. Then add the veggies and follow the same process mentioned above.

If you want your sauce to be creamier and thicker, add cream or yogurt or cashew paste or poppy seed paste or coconut milk or any other thickening agent. Add a knob of butter for more richness.

Cook meat same way as veggies. Most Indian dishes will treat meat as if it were a vegetable added to a curry. Typically, this would be chicken or goat pieces marinated in yogurt, garlic-ginger paste, turmeric powder, and red chili powder.

For added heat and freshness, add diced green chilies (Thai or serranos or jalapenos or Calabrian chilies or anything) along with the veggies or tomatoes.

Tip: If you do not want a strong garlicky taste, do not crush garlic, mince it instead. You can also use asafoetida (about half a teaspoon) instead of garlic.

You can also hand crush about 1 teaspoon of dried fenugreek leaves and add it in the last 5 minutes of cooking. It adds a very nice flavor and aroma.

Another tip: Par boil your veggies in the microwave using steamer bags. It cuts down your cooking time like crazy.

bon appetit