Best Balti House Curry Sauce Recipes

Home made Balti sauce image

Provided by Mina Joshi

Number Of Ingredients 17

1 tbsp cinnamon powder
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garam masala
2 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp chilli powder (or fresh green chillies)
1 tsp mustard seeds
2-4 tbsp oil (flavourless like sunflower or vegetable)
1 large onion
3-4 cloves of garlic
2 tsp finely grated ginger
3-4 fresh tomatoes or half a can of tinned tomatoes or passata
Salt to taste
3-4 curry leaves
¼ tsp ground cardamom powder
1/2 lemon juice

Steps:

Prepare the onions, ginger and garlic. Chop the onions in slices, the garlic in small pieces and grate the ginger
In a saucepan, add the oil and mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds pop, add the curry leaves, onions, ginger and garlic. Keep stirring and make sure the garlic doesn't get burnt or it will ruin the taste of the sauce.
In a separate hot griddle or frying pan, lightly toast the spices: cinnamon, ground coriander, turmeric, paprika, garam masala, ground cumin and chilli powder together. Keep the heat low and keep moving them with a wooden spoon until you get the fragrance of the spices. Remove the mixture in a bowl and allow to cool.
Once the onions, garlic and ginger mixture is cooked, add the spice mixture and lower the heat.
Now add the tomatoes with one cup of hot water. Also add the salt, lemon juice and cardamom seeds and allow this to simmer on a low heat.
Once the sauce has thickened and looks rich, take it off the heat and allow to cool.
Once cooled, remove the curry leaves and use a hand-blender to make it smooth.

Balti Sauce - Basic Sauce for Anything Goes Curry image

Provided by magpie diner

Categories < 60 Mins

Time 1h

Yield 3 cups, 4 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 19

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (sub fresh chilis if you like)
2 teaspoons light oil (I use coconut, other light oils would work)
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
14 ounces crushed tomatoes, tinned
1 cup water
1 teaspoon sea salt
3 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom powder
1 lemon, zest of
1/2 lemon, juice of

Steps:

Measure out the 8 spices into a bowl (first 8 ingredients). If using fresh chilis then leave those out for now. Warm up a large skillet or pot (ideally cast iron) and bring to med-high heat. Gently roast the spices in the dry skillet -- watching the mixture doesn't burn, keep stirring. After about a minute it will become fragrant and begin to get dark - take it off the heat and pour back into the bowl - set aside.
Put the skillet back on the heat, add in the oil and bring back to medium high heat. Add in the chopped onion and cook thru until translucent. Once the onion is cooked, add in the ginger and garlic and mix well - watching the garlic doesn't burn. Next add the spice mixture back in, followed by the tinned tomatoes.
Mix in about 1 cup of water - you want a thick sauce, but not too paste-like. Add in the salt, bay leaves and cardamom seeds.
Grate the zest off of the lemon, add to the pot, along with the juice from 1/2 of the lemon. Save the other half for later, you may want to add more. Let it all simmer on medium-low.
For a nice smooth sauce, remove the bay leaves and blend until smooth (an immersion blender works well).

Nutrition Facts : Calories 88.4, Fat 1.6, SaturatedFat 0.2, Sodium 726.6, Carbohydrate 19.7, Fiber 6.2, Sugar 2.5, Protein 3.5