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Question for curry lovers

Devilsadvokat

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I guess we nearly all love curry because you can't wipe away your upbringing that easily and I guess it is really odd to find Asian who dislikes and it is more than likely said curry hater doesn't live in the sub-continent, one can afford to be fussy say here in the UK.

We love mostly meat curries, whereas those across the border who don't eat meat, have dhal curry amongst others.

Another tangent - Do you why chilli is popular in say sub-continent? Days before refrigeration, chilli masks the taste of bad/off meat No wonder the restaurants can sell and deliver curry so cheaply.

My question and please don't Google, you are only cheating yourself ( I don't get that, if you cheat and pass exam, you've cheated the system, no?

Let me not digress any further. Do you know how to reduce the heat of a curry, if for instance it is way too hot for your palate?

Yogurt or milk are not acceptable answer as they alter the taste. So I am looking for something that directly nullifies/neutralises the heat in a curry, which is caused by chilli, as measured on the Scolville scale ( How hot a chilli is).

I didn't know until my last girlfriend told me, not only did she know lots of stuff, she was a trained chef. She is now my ex, she told me a couple a years ago, how embarrassing not to know when asked, being Asian and being asked by an English person.

Since then I have asked many Asians, mostly Pakistanis, not many Indians in my home town. Maybe the Indians know, we will find out.

The last person I asked was my new dentist (moved from hometown) two days ago, he didn't know either.

So what us that ingredient found in 99 per cent of everybodies kitchen?
 
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I guess we nearly all love curry, us Muslims including ex Muslims because you can't wipe away your upbringing that easily and I guess it is really odd to find Asian who dislikes and it is more than likely said curry hater doesn't live in the sub-continent, one can afford to be fussy say here in the UK.

Sorry I was talking about Muslims before I tangent(ed) off, us Muslims love mostly meat curries, whereas those across the border who don't eat meat, have dhal curry amongst others.

Another tangent - Do you why chilli is popular in say sub-continent? Days before refrigeration, chilli masks the taste of bad/off meat No wonder the restaurants can sell and deliver curry so cheaply.

My question and please don't Google, you are only cheating yourself ( I don't get that, if you cheat and pass exam, you've cheated the system, no?

Let me not digress any further. Do you know how to reduce the heat of a curry, if for instance it is way too hot for your palate?

Yogurt or milk are not acceptable answer as they alter the taste. So I am looking for something that directly nullifies/neutralises the heat in a curry, which is caused by chilli, as measured on the Scolville scale ( How hot a chilli is).

I didn't know until my last girlfriend told me, not only did she know lots of stuff, she was a trained chef. She is now my ex, she told me a couple a years ago, how embarrassing not to know when asked, being Asian and being asked by an English person.

Since then I have asked many Asians, mostly Pakistanis, not many Indians in my home town. Maybe the Indians know, we will find out.

The last person I asked was my new dentist (moved from hometown) two days ago, he didn't know either.

So what us that ingredient found in 99 per cent of everybodies kitchen?

According to google, it’s tomatoes.
 
I guess we nearly all love curry, us Muslims including ex Muslims because you can't wipe away your upbringing that easily and I guess it is really odd to find Asian who dislikes and it is more than likely said curry hater doesn't live in the sub-continent, one can afford to be fussy say here in the UK.

Sorry I was talking about Muslims before I tangent(ed) off, us Muslims love mostly meat curries, whereas those across the border who don't eat meat, have dhal curry amongst others.

Another tangent - Do you why chilli is popular in say sub-continent? Days before refrigeration, chilli masks the taste of bad/off meat No wonder the restaurants can sell and deliver curry so cheaply.

My question and please don't Google, you are only cheating yourself ( I don't get that, if you cheat and pass exam, you've cheated the system, no?

Let me not digress any further. Do you know how to reduce the heat of a curry, if for instance it is way too hot for your palate?

Yogurt or milk are not acceptable answer as they alter the taste. So I am looking for something that directly nullifies/neutralises the heat in a curry, which is caused by chilli, as measured on the Scolville scale ( How hot a chilli is).

I didn't know until my last girlfriend told me, not only did she know lots of stuff, she was a trained chef. She is now my ex, she told me a couple a years ago, how embarrassing not to know when asked, being Asian and being asked by an English person.

Since then I have asked many Asians, mostly Pakistanis, not many Indians in my home town. Maybe the Indians know, we will find out.

The last person I asked was my new dentist (moved from hometown) two days ago, he didn't know either.

So what us that ingredient found in 99 per cent of everybodies kitchen?

Tomatoes. Or you can just add sugar.

You don't need to add chilli. In any case, chillies are good for firing up the metabolism.
 
Tomatoes. Or you can just add sugar.


You don't need to add chilli. In any case, chillies are good for firing up the metabolism.

I didn't know about tomatoes but I guess like with yoghurt it would chamge the taste. It is indeed sugar, which directly impacts the heat

How many people knew that? Not many i guess even with googling it seems. Plus more likely to find sugar than tomatoes in say a student house.

You have to have chilli, don't get me wrong it not bravado, I still gonna sweat and regret even more the next morning but me loves chilli, when they ask how you want your good at take away, mild medium or hot I eant them to introduce medium to hot.

I hate saying hot in case matey takes it as a challenge.
 
Also you can't really put tomatoes after the cooking has been done.

That's why sugar is the answer.
 
Incidentally , there are lot of vegetarian curry dishes besides daal & most are tomato gravy based like aloo-matar , matar-paneer , guchhi-matar ,malai-kofta, kachalu , aloo-vadi etc besides some in white gravy like shahi paneer , paneer pasanda , paneer in almond paste , navratan korma ,khoya-matar , kaju curry & the then kadi's like besan one with pakodas , sindhi kadi with drumsticks . I wonder if my fave sambhar could be classified as curry .
Normally , when a dish is too spicy before plating , water is generally added or cream .
 
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Incidentally , there are lot of vegetarian curry dishes besides daal & most are tomato gravy based like aloo-matar , matar-paneer , guchhi-matar ,malai-kofta, kachalu , aloo-vadi etc besides some in white gravy like shahi paneer , paneer pasanda , paneer in almond paste , navratan korma ,khoya-matar , kaju curry & the then kadi's like besan one with pakodas , sindhi kadi with drumsticks . I wonder if my fave sambhar could be classified as curry .
Normally , when a dish is too spicy before plating , water is generally added or cream .

It's just my opinion, but I think South Indians are more creative when it comes to veg dishes although they are not to everyone's taste. Pakistani range of veg dishes has been traditionally very limited in my experience.
 
Incidentally , there are lot of vegetarian curry dishes besides daal & most are tomato gravy based like aloo-matar , matar-paneer , guchhi-matar ,malai-kofta, kachalu , aloo-vadi etc besides some in white gravy like shahi paneer , paneer pasanda , paneer in almond paste , navratan korma ,khoya-matar , kaju curry & the then kadi's like besan one with pakodas , sindhi kadi with drumsticks . I wonder if my fave sambhar could be classified as curry .
Normally , when a dish is too spicy before plating , water is generally added or cream .

I know fella, why can't I wind up the Hindus for once.

I like/love okra, cauliflower and spinach. I have just bought chicken ( halal) to make curry for myself.
 
Incidentally , there are lot of vegetarian curry dishes besides daal & most are tomato gravy based like aloo-matar , matar-paneer , guchhi-matar ,malai-kofta, kachalu , aloo-vadi etc besides some in white gravy like shahi paneer , paneer pasanda , paneer in almond paste , navratan korma ,khoya-matar , kaju curry & the then kadi's like besan one with pakodas , sindhi kadi with drumsticks . I wonder if my fave sambhar could be classified as curry .
Normally , when a dish is too spicy before plating , water is generally added or cream .

Chettinad veg cuisine is not very tomato based, mushroom peper fry/masala one example.
 
I didn't know about tomatoes but I guess like with yoghurt it would chamge the taste. It is indeed sugar, which directly impacts the heat

How many people knew that? Not many i guess even with googling it seems. Plus more likely to find sugar than tomatoes in say a student house.

You have to have chilli, don't get me wrong it not bravado, I still gonna sweat and regret even more the next morning but me loves chilli, when they ask how you want your good at take away, mild medium or hot I eant them to introduce medium to hot.

I hate saying hot in case matey takes it as a challenge.

In subcontinent, we don't do sugar and chillies together so much in curries. You just tend to add more tomatoes, which have some sugar in them. Sugar and chillies is cornerstone of south East Asian and Chinese cooking to balance flavours.

Here is another tip... ground the spices fresh in pestle and mortar and see the difference in taste and aroma. You will not want to use the powders ever again.

Having too much chilli just overpowers all the other flavours. For me it's finding that balance where the heat doesn't over power everything else.
 
In subcontinent, we don't do sugar and chillies together so much in curries. You just tend to add more tomatoes, which have some sugar in them. Sugar and chillies is cornerstone of south East Asian and Chinese cooking to balance flavours.

Here is another tip... ground the spices fresh in pestle and mortar and see the difference in taste and aroma. You will not want to use the powders ever again.

Having too much chilli just overpowers all the other flavours. For me it's finding that balance where the heat doesn't over power everything else.

You would be surprised to see pestle and mortar integral part of many homes in Tamil Nadu, but do you grind em Everytime? Or grind em keep?
 
It's just my opinion, but I think South Indians are more creative when it comes to veg dishes although they are not to everyone's taste. Pakistani range of veg dishes has been traditionally very limited in my experience.

A good Sambar is better than any soup in my opinion & that is what makes the breakfast items like dosa , vada , idli etc tick . We had a lady cook who did awesome Sambar & dosa's [ for this you require a special tawa ] plus fluffy idli's besides the usual Punjabi khana but she is now over 50 & has retired as her 2 sons are doing well . I miss her versatility as a cook .
 
Just to point out that I am suggesting sugar to reduce heat once curry is cooked or served and has too much heat.

Tomatoes I guess go in with everything whilst cooking.

Also to express surprise that not many native curry lovers knew this and either didnt ear hot curry or sweated thru it.
 
You would be surprised to see pestle and mortar integral part of many homes in Tamil Nadu, but do you grind em Everytime? Or grind em keep?

Pestle and mortar is the best thing I invested in as an amateur cook.

Yes grind every time, it's well worth the effort of what extra few mins. Some spices, toast them before grinding like cumin, peppercorns, mustard and coriander seeds etc...
 
Pestle and mortar is the best thing I invested in as an amateur cook.

Yes grind every time, it's well worth the effort of what extra few mins. Some spices, toast them before grinding like cumin, peppercorns, mustard and coriander seeds etc...

Got it thanks.
 
While you're cooking you can reduce the number of chillies and put in more tomatoes. But if someone else has cooked the meal already and it is spicy then it's not easy to reverse that, if you're having the curry with rice then yogurt is a solution I suppose. Sugar would just make the dish way too sweet but if that's what you prefer then it could be good I guess.
 
my reply is wasted as OP was trolling .

I'm sorry if you feel that way, it was a light joke and my 'trolling' wasn't a trap, I wasn't going to talk about curry per se, it was one question, that I asked because I as Pakistani curry eater for many many years did not know that if you went to dinner as a guest and the curry was way too hot for you, then simply adding sugar won't sweeten the curry because it will be using its sweetness to fight the heat of the chilli. And you find sugar everywhere. I was shocked to learn this, that bit decades, that no one had told me before and no one I asked knew about it. And it was a native woman who told me.

I did not say that there was only dhal curry, I added 'amongst others'. How else would South Indian Vegetarian Restaurants make money if there was only dhal.

Dhal is lovely, I didn't appreciate it as s kid but I wouldn't miss roti if dhal was on the menu.
 
A good Sambar is better than any soup in my opinion & that is what makes the breakfast items like dosa , vada , idli etc tick . We had a lady cook who did awesome Sambar & dosa's [ for this you require a special tawa ] plus fluffy idli's besides the usual Punjabi khana but she is now over 50 & has retired as her 2 sons are doing well . I miss her versatility as a cook .

Sounds awesome. Almost makes me wish I was a vegetarian, albeit reminds me that our famous Punjabi breakfast channa puri is also vegetarian but would probably induce cardiac arrest by the time you were 40 if you ate it every morning.
 
Curry with meat has to be spicy.

Curyy with veg/fish, I can understand without chillies.

But if your complaining about heat in your curry, go and eat something else like beans on toast
 
Curry with meat has to be spicy.

Curyy with veg/fish, I can understand without chillies.

But if your complaining about heat in your curry, go and eat something else like beans on toast

No, I am saying that I am shocked that I along with every other person I asked IRL did not know that sugar reduces the heat of the chilli without affecting anything else.

This would be handy to know if and when one is faced with a curry that is too hot to handle.

It's like someone telling the Eskimos summat new about snow, or the South Koreans about kimchi, or sushi for the Japanese.
 
I’m British pakistani and I do not like curry. Especially all meat curry. If I do eat a curry it must be a vegetable curry.

To reduce spice all you need to do is increase its acidic content. So add lemon and lime.
 
Sounds awesome. Almost makes me wish I was a vegetarian, albeit reminds me that our famous Punjabi breakfast channa puri is also vegetarian but would probably induce cardiac arrest by the time you were 40 if you ate it every morning.
I eat only chicken & seafood besides vegetarian & mutton/red meat is very rare like maybe once a month .
Choley puri & halwa i am certain no one can have more than 2 or 3 times a month & that too on a Sunday . It sits in your stomach till evening .
 
My mom used to do it all the time. May be you should ask yours.

When you say "all the time' do you mean your mum made every single curry with too much chilli to begin with, and then using salt she bought the level of the heat down to taste. Every time?
 
Or by 'all the time' do you mean that after every time by accident rather than by design, salt was used to nullify?

Well this is a logical fallacy, an Appeal to Authority, in this case you are using your mum as an authority. I'm afraid I'm gonna need more evidence than because your mum does it 'all the time".
 
Or by 'all the time' do you mean that after every time by accident rather than by design, salt was used to nullify?

Well this is a logical fallacy, an Appeal to Authority, in this case you are using your mum as an authority. I'm afraid I'm gonna need more evidence than because your mum does it 'all the time".

Let's see how long you can go without the using words ... Muslim, ex Muslim and logical fallacy... :)
 
No, I am saying that I am shocked that I along with every other person I asked IRL did not know that sugar reduces the heat of the chilli without affecting anything else.

This would be handy to know if and when one is faced with a curry that is too hot to handle.

It's like someone telling the Eskimos summat new about snow, or the South Koreans about kimchi, or sushi for the Japanese.

So what do you do? Sprinkle sugar on your food in a plate? Doesn't it get way too sweet?
 
So what do you do? Sprinkle sugar on your food in a plate? Doesn't it get way too sweet?

The question posed in OP was what item found in every kitchen can be used to nullify the heat of chillies _if_ you find that it is way too hot for you.

Important word _if_. Meaning if and when a curry is way too hot, not every time, just when it is too too hot.

Chilli hear is measured on the Scoville scale, sugar reduces the reading on the scale. Generally I like hot curries and don't tend to need it with less heat.

The whole subject interested me because I did not know that sugar could do that to a curry, and no one I asked, mainly Asians, knew it either with most people citing yoghurt as the coolant.

And the fact that an English person told me, raised my interest in this topic, as in why wasn't it known to Asian cooks.
 
The question posed in OP was what item found in every kitchen can be used to nullify the heat of chillies _if_ you find that it is way too hot for you.

Important word _if_. Meaning if and when a curry is way too hot, not every time, just when it is too too hot.

Chilli hear is measured on the Scoville scale, sugar reduces the reading on the scale. Generally I like hot curries and don't tend to need it with less heat.

The whole subject interested me because I did not know that sugar could do that to a curry, and no one I asked, mainly Asians, knew it either with most people citing yoghurt as the coolant.

And the fact that an English person told me, raised my interest in this topic, as in why wasn't it known to Asian cooks.

Asian cooks would just put less chilli in the first place if they wanted to keep the heat down. If they did overdo it most of them would just eat it as is rather than add sugar. Desis generally don't like the British version of chicken tikka masala because that's too sweet, it's more of a dish for the English palate.
 
Asian cooks would just put less chilli in the first place if they wanted to keep the heat down. If they did overdo it most of them would just eat it as is rather than add sugar. Desis generally don't like the British version of chicken tikka masala because that's too sweet, it's more of a dish for the English palate.

Ok, lemme rephrase the question. Who knew that sugar nullifies the heat of the chilli without changing the taste of the curry. The curry doesn't taste sweeter because the sweetness and the heat counteract each other.

Have you never had a curry that was to hot to handle?
 
Ok, lemme rephrase the question. Who knew that sugar nullifies the heat of the chilli without changing the taste of the curry. The curry doesn't taste sweeter because the sweetness and the heat counteract each other.

Have you never had a curry that was to hot to handle?

I've had curries that I think were too hot, but I'll eat them anyway, I can handle a bit of extra heat even if it's not ideal.
 
I've had curries that I think were too hot, but I'll eat them anyway, I can handle a bit of extra heat even if it's not ideal.

Good for you, I remember two exceptionally hot curries that I had to leave, now if the cook or I knew about sugar...
 
Make sure you dont put extra chilli and chilli powder if you are cooking. If you are ordering ask the waiter how hot the food is.

If you are at a party either some yoghurt or having some sweet chutney softens the blow. I also feel that mixing with rice has some effect. I have also heard liquid daal (if its not made hot itself) also can reduce the heat.
 
Deliberately making a chicken curry a little hotter than normal so I test the sugar theory. Just tasted the cooking sauce, wow, it has bite.

Wonder how hot on the Scoville scale, any one had a Scotch Bonnet chilli? I think they rate a 1000, or 10000 on that scale
 
Deliberately making a chicken curry a little hotter than normal so I test the sugar theory. Just tasted the cooking sauce, wow, it has bite.

Wonder how hot on the Scoville scale, any one had a Scotch Bonnet chilli? I think they rate a 1000, or 10000 on that scale

Yes, had it in jerk chicken. West Indians use it in their cooking. Extreme hot chilli.
 
Hve never really heard a Pakistani used the term "curry" tbh. It's usually saalan, masala or sometimes graibi (gravy).
 
Hve never really heard a Pakistani used the term "curry" tbh. It's usually saalan, masala or sometimes graibi (gravy).

At home it is 'handi', kay handi bunny hai? Sahlun kai? Never used the term curry at home unless it refers to saunf ki karree? Ya dahee ki?
 
I putting potatoes in too but seems I have to take em out and boil em as they ain't soft for time yet.
 
Deliberately making a chicken curry a little hotter than normal so I test the sugar theory. Just tasted the cooking sauce, wow, it has bite.

Wonder how hot on the Scoville scale, any one had a Scotch Bonnet chilli? I think they rate a 1000, or 10000 on that scale

Nothing in front of ghost chilly (bhoot jolokia) [MENTION=133315]Hitman[/MENTION]
 
I wish I could post a picture of the chooza I just made, it tastes as good as it looks, still didn't get the chilli too high, in trying to do so, o know how many birds eye chilli (think that is what they called) I can put in...
 
Hve never really heard a Pakistani used the term "curry" tbh. It's usually saalan, masala or sometimes graibi (gravy).

Never heard the word masala to indicate overall dish, chooza masala??Dhal Masala??

Sometimes the reference is to the main staple _roti_ not so much rice, so the question is roti vaste kay puckiya?

Never heard of graibi, that would be shorba in my household. Loadsa Hindi/Urdu, my favourite include juggernaut, loot, pukka, even avatar but I've never heard it used before.
 
Never heard the word masala to indicate overall dish, chooza masala??Dhal Masala??

Sometimes the reference is to the main staple _roti_ not so much rice, so the question is roti vaste kay puckiya?

Never heard of graibi, that would be shorba in my household. Loadsa Hindi/Urdu, my favourite include juggernaut, loot, pukka, even avatar but I've never heard it used before.

Yeah, forgot about shorba. Actually saalan and shorba are the two most used. Masala is mostly used when it is a drier dish with no saalan. Haven't used these terms in so long.

Also never heard "wastey" used in a sentence like that. Mere wastey, Us kai wastey, Khuda kai Wastey etc but never Roti vaste, that's how mostly my Indian friends used it, along with curry.
 
Yeah, forgot about shorba. Actually saalan and shorba are the two most used. Masala is mostly used when it is a drier dish with no saalan. Haven't used these terms in so long.

Also never heard "wastey" used in a sentence like that. Mere wastey, Us kai wastey, Khuda kai Wastey etc but never Roti vaste, that's how mostly my Indian friends used it, along with curry.

Because the pahari/potwari/Mirpuri I picked up was 70's, when I revisted they laughed at my old school Punjabi, saloona instead of salaan, goja instead of jayyb, swadala instead of mazedaar.

I guess roti vaaste lol, in my household was that it was 100 per cent nailed on whatever there was made it was going to be eaten with roti. Roti was the staple.
 
Never heard the word masala to indicate overall dish, chooza masala??Dhal Masala??

Sometimes the reference is to the main staple _roti_ not so much rice, so the question is roti vaste kay puckiya?

Never heard of graibi, that would be shorba in my household. Loadsa Hindi/Urdu, my favourite include juggernaut, loot, pukka, even avatar but I've never heard it used before.

Forgot to add that juggernaut, loot and pukka are all Hindi/ Urdu words used in English language, there are quite a few more.
 
Because the pahari/potwari/Mirpuri I picked up was 70's, when I revisted they laughed at my old school Punjabi, saloona instead of salaan, goja instead of jayyb, swadala instead of mazedaar.

I guess roti vaaste lol, in my household was that it was 100 per cent nailed on whatever there was made it was going to be eaten with roti. Roti was the staple.

Saloona is Arabic, were they influenced by the Arab spice traders in some way or was it the other way round? Don't know much about Mirpuri history. Although swadala is definitely more Hindi based.
 
Chamuch or Kashik? Or spoon. Pakistani Pakistani have a problem saying words like beginning, some syllables are alien to Urdu tongue and vice versa, watch next time Imran Khan says it for example
 
Chamuch or Kashik? Or spoon. Pakistani Pakistani have a problem saying words like beginning, some syllables are alien to Urdu tongue and vice versa, watch next time Imran Khan says it for example

Let me untwist this before I sleep, even the top education in Pakistan cannot get someone like even Imran Khan, pronounce a word such as 'beginning', it more biggerning.
 
Chamuch or Kashik? Or spoon. Pakistani Pakistani have a problem saying words like beginning, some syllables are alien to Urdu tongue and vice versa, watch next time Imran Khan says it for example

Interesting that you should mention chamuch, there is another slightly different spelling of that which I think is censored on here.
 
Apparently it is specifically brown sugar. Restaurants use it to reduce heat if customer complains.
 
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