oowee Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 7 minutes ago, Mungler said: Is there an easy way to peel garlic? Squash it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatchap Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 18 minutes ago, Mungler said: Is there an easy way to peel garlic? The last batch cook of base sauce I did needed just under 1/2 kilo and life is far too short for peeling / crushing that quantity of garlic. A bit of bike inner tube works a treat, thoroughly clean it first. Put the garlic inside bit of pressure with your hand roll it backwards and forwards twice. Hey presto peeled garlic Jamie oliver was selling bits of inner tube for a tenner online calling them the easy peeler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatcatsplat Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 22 minutes ago, Mungler said: Is there an easy way to peel garlic? The last batch cook of base sauce I did needed just under 1/2 kilo and life is far too short for peeling / crushing that quantity of garlic. I reckon I could knock a pound out in 5 minutes (Please insert innuendo here as appropriate) - I tend to get larger cloves as the silly little supermarket ones are just a pain. Wonder if you could just put them in a juicer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 9 minutes ago, Fatcatsplat said: I reckon I could knock a pound out in 5 minutes (Please insert innuendo here as appropriate) - I tend to get larger cloves as the silly little supermarket ones are just a pain. Wonder if you could just put them in a juicer? That would depend whether you only want the flavour and none of the texture! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 2 hours ago, Mungler said: Is there an easy way to peel garlic? The last batch cook of base sauce I did needed just under 1/2 kilo and life is far too short for peeling / crushing that quantity of garlic. Crush it with the knife side ways then it slips out easily. Easy garlic is disgusting, doesn't taste or garlic and ruins the taste of the food. If something is worth doing, it's worth doing right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Neal Posted January 5, 2021 Report Share Posted January 5, 2021 As mentioned above, try to buy bulbs that have the biggest cloves possible. I just discard the tiny little cloves out of a bulb, they're not worth the hassle! Put your bulb of garlic on a solid surface and smash it with the heel of your hand to break the cloves apart. Put the cloves into a cup/pot of cold water and soak for a good few hours, or overnight. They'll peel really easy after that, the skin just comes away as you top & tail them. The same thing can be done with onions. If you can manage a sneak peek into an Indian restaurant's kitchen you'll see one or two massive buckets full of onions soaking in water, to be used the next day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 8 hours ago, Jim Neal said: As mentioned above, try to buy bulbs that have the biggest cloves possible. I just discard the tiny little cloves out of a bulb, they're not worth the hassle Put your bulb of garlic on a solid surface and smash it with the heel of your hand to break the cloves apart. Put the cloves into a cup/pot of cold water and soak for a good few hours, or overnight. They'll peel really easy after that, the skin just comes away as you top & tail them. The same thing can be done with onions. If you can manage a sneak peek into an Indian restaurant's kitchen you'll see one or two massive buckets full of onions soaking in water, to be used the next day. Alrighty, that’s a plan. I did wonder how an indian restaurant would do their onions - I get mine in 20 kilo sacks from a farm shop for about £2 a bag but with 1 day before they go past their best. At £2 a bag I put on swimming goggles and just hatchet them - more goes in the compost bin that the pot 😆 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 4 hours ago, Mungler said: .........they go past their best. At £2 a bag I put on swimming goggles and just hatchet them - more goes in the compost bin that the pot That explains the reports of toxic waste or nerve gas in parts of Essex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruno22rf Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 Quick snap the the other halfs Curry Kit - we reckon we can make just about any Curry out there. BTW - there's a youtube channel called "glebekitchen" that, if you subscribe, gives loads for recipes designed to taste like the take away food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosshouse Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 If you want to cook proper restaurant style indian curries whole spices is the only way to go. I"ve been using a book The Curry Guy written by Dan Toombs, cannot recommend it highly enough, He has recently brought out The Curry Guy Bible which is all of The Curry Guy book plus a lot more, Tesco"s have it for about a tenner. I got everything I needed online from Spices of India, using Dan Toombs book as a guide £30 worth of various spices makes me a big variety meals for months. I was also using Easy garlic/ginger untill I was told to try fresh, definitely better and worth the effort. I blitz equal amounts fresh garlic and ginger in a food processor and freeze it in a tray for making ice cubes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruno22rf Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 Much experimentation led us to the Laziza product, it's very hard to tell the difference twixt that and fresh, we use it quite a lot in Italian meals as well. Some herbs I grow myself which helps with freshness but as long as you cook the dry spices in a little oil you should get a pretty good flavour. Grate your Onions and squeeze out the water and if you use chicken breast then always velvet it before use - her indoors was trained by the Roux brothers so she's a fair cook! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Neal Posted January 6, 2021 Report Share Posted January 6, 2021 I was in the supermarket today. In the herbs & spices section I spotted those jars of "lazy" garlic and the earlier posts in this thread sprang to mind about them not quite tasting right. So, I reached up to take one and inspect its ingredients.... only to find that some numbskull had taken the top off the jar and not screwed it back on. I have no fear of getting bitten by a vampire tonight, or for the next few weeks. And yes it doesn't exactly smell like freshly pressed garlic... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted January 7, 2021 Report Share Posted January 7, 2021 Everyday is a school day - never heard of velvetting and have just googled it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted January 7, 2021 Report Share Posted January 7, 2021 I use the curry secret book also, but I make a few additions to both the base gravy, namele a few carrots, a red pepper and a quarter of a small cabbage* (trust me on that last one), plus some garam massala and a small amount of smoked paprika. *per big batch, not per curry! For the curries themselves, I will tune them a bit to get the signature flavour for the various styles in my area (e.g. ground fennel and whole star anise for a madras, nigella seed for a balti, black cardamom for a rogan josh etc). The other revelation I've had in making curries is my pressure cooker. With that I can produce melt in the mouth traditional northern pakistani dishes like lamb haandi in about 30 mins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob85 Posted January 7, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2021 7 hours ago, Zapp said: I use the curry secret book also, but I make a few additions to both the base gravy, namele a few carrots, a red pepper and a quarter of a small cabbage* (trust me on that last one), plus some garam massala and a small amount of smoked paprika. *per big batch, not per curry! For the curries themselves, I will tune them a bit to get the signature flavour for the various styles in my area (e.g. ground fennel and whole star anise for a madras, nigella seed for a balti, black cardamom for a rogan josh etc). The other revelation I've had in making curries is my pressure cooker. With that I can produce melt in the mouth traditional northern pakistani dishes like lamb haandi in about 30 mins. I salute you on the pressure cooker, nobody seems to use them nowadays, last time I used one was just over 23 years ago in high school. A dangerous old contraption in the hands of idiot schoolkids! I wish I could do lamb curries at home, sadly I'm the only one who eats it and the missus doesn't even like the smell of it cooking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted January 7, 2021 Report Share Posted January 7, 2021 Just now, Rob85 said: I salute you on the pressure cooker, nobody seems to use them nowadays, last time I used one was just over 23 years ago in high school. A dangerous old contraption in the hands of idiot schoolkids! I wish I could do lamb curries at home, sadly I'm the only one who eats it and the missus doesn't even like the smell of it cooking Its honestly the best kitchen gadget I've ever had. Melting pheasant stew in 25 mins. Irish stew in 35. Beef shin in 45. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D_shooter Posted January 7, 2021 Report Share Posted January 7, 2021 You can buy jars of ginger/garlic paste from most big supermarkets or Asian stores. Saves a massive amount of time peeling and mincing. Doesn’t have the vinegar preserve like the lazy stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruno22rf Posted January 8, 2021 Report Share Posted January 8, 2021 11 hours ago, D_shooter said: You can buy jars of ginger/garlic paste from most big supermarkets or Asian stores. Saves a massive amount of time peeling and mincing. Doesn’t have the vinegar preserve like the lazy stuff. Be careful which one you buy if you go for the larger sizes - some have short shelf lives once opened, the Laziza offering simply says "refrigerate after opening", ours last a good couple of months in the fridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D_shooter Posted January 8, 2021 Report Share Posted January 8, 2021 4 hours ago, bruno22rf said: Be careful which one you buy if you go for the larger sizes - some have short shelf lives once opened, the Laziza offering simply says "refrigerate after opening", ours last a good couple of months in the fridge. Luckily we use a fair amount in various recipes so haven’t had any issues yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GingerCat Posted January 8, 2021 Report Share Posted January 8, 2021 I'm not bad at a curry, I've been told its comparable to the local shop. I disagree with that however will say that doing it in a pizza oven totally transforms a "good" or "average" curry into an "excellent" or "xxxx me" curry. If you have a pizza oven then try it, if you don't then build one and be amazed. No excuses for not building one as I did it and can't lay a brick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donkey Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 I’ve bought bags of frozen garlic and ginger from Morrison’s they are in slabs of small blocks very handy and none of the vinegar taste from the Jars of lazy garlic i also get the tubes of garlic mixed herbs Chili or ginger from aldi or Lidl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 This guy is well worth a subscribe: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Neal Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 On 08/01/2021 at 21:19, GingerCat said: No excuses for not building one as I did it and can't lay a brick. What about if you live in a third floor flat? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted January 13, 2021 Report Share Posted January 13, 2021 7 hours ago, Jim Neal said: What about if you live in a third floor flat? Window box? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GingerCat Posted January 13, 2021 Report Share Posted January 13, 2021 10 hours ago, Jim Neal said: What about if you live in a third floor flat? Get creative and vent out a window. The neighbours would love you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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