On Tuesday, 26 March 2013 03:03:08 UTC+10, Janet Bostwick wrote:
> Does no one here cook any of the various curries or eat curry?

I cook Indian-style curries. At one time, I was cooking them more often than anything else, but less often these days. Also Arab/North African dishes that are curries but not usually called "curry". Sometimes South-East Asian curries. My wife cooks Japanese curries.

I'll make from scratch, often with a variation of "5C": coriander, cumin, chilli, cardamom, cinnamon. Or if using fresh chillies, 5C becomes coriander, cumin, cardamon, cinnamon, cloves. Other things that make it into the mix are sweet paprika, black pepper, turmeric. Garlic and ginger if you count them as spices. Curry leaves. Sometimes lime leaves and or lime peel.

Usually with meat (beef, pork, chicken, goat), sometimes vegetarian or fish.. Vegetables will vary with what is available. IMO, okra is nice in curries..

Won't eat out at Indian restaurants unless that's the choice of others. Indian restaurants around here tend to have cookie-cutter menus, just the same generic curries, pick your sauce, pick your meat, and don't expect significant vegetables. The food can be OK, but I always think that I could have done much better.

Indian is good for big parties. Do a range of salads (Indian carrot and mustard seed salad is good), a big pot of dal (lentil curry), a hot meaty curry, a mild meaty curry, a vegetable curry, fry up some bhajis (chickpea batter with vegetables), deep-fried flatbread, dry-fried flatbread, pappadums, and you can keep a backyard full of kids and adults going for hours.

> I get the impression that here curry is thought of as one flavor and
> one dish. And that the jar in the grocery store labeled 'curry
> powder' is the only flavor of curry.

That's for making English curries.