1. Kuch zyaada “namak-shamak”:
When it comes to come-backs and curries, it’s best to keep the salt to a minimum, according to mum. But whoops if you over-salted your curry, sweat not, just drop a few balls of kneaded wheat dough (atta) into the curry, leave them for 45-60 minutes. The dough-balls soak up the excess salt and can be scooped out very easily. You can also adjust the salt by adding some cream or vinegar if you like.
2. Teekhe ko meetha twist:
Contrary to popular belief, spices don’t just bring “heat” and flavour to your dishes, they also bring vibrant colours. For example, Ratan Jot is used to bring that beautiful red tinge to Kashmiri Rogan Josh, and turmeric stains curries a bright yellow. But, even the spices need a helping hand sometimes. According to moms, a small dash of sugar while frying helps intensify the colours of spices.
3. Pinch of perfection:
Sometimes hours of prep just needs a pinch of something special to make the perfect curry. But, what is that “something special”? Which spices do you use to tie the whole dish together?
Our Bengali moms have a special hack which guarantees delicious dal. Just incorporate a pinch of radhuni, also known as ajmod or wild celery to elevate your dal from basic to bomb.
While our Mummiji’s from Punjab suggest adding a pinch of lightly roasted and hand-crushed kasuri methi towards the end of your cooking, to elevate any curry in a hurry.
4. Pushpa, I hate tears..
Well, mothers hate them too! So, here’s their sage advice about chopping those dreading onions. Cut the ends of the onion and run it under cold water before you slice it. That’s it. One small step will save you from those burning tears.
P.S. : Adding a pinch of baking soda helps caramelize your chopped onions much faster too!
5. Bye-bye texture troubles
At the end of the day, curries are all about texture. If they’re too water-y your naan or parantha can’t soak in those beautiful flavours to give you that perfect bite. If they’re too thick, you can’t enjoy them with a side of steaming comforting rice. So, here are two quick fixes for the perfect consistency.
- Add a teaspoon of roasted poppy seed powder to soak up excess water from your gravies. Remember to simmer on medium flame to help the process
- To make your curries lush, rich and creamy, add a tablespoon of whipped curd and mix on low heat.
6. Ultimate curry hack:
Skip the chopping, prepping and all the “oops” moments which need hacks to save the dish/day and cook with CURRYiT’s mom-approved range of ready to cook curry pastes.
Why are we mom-approved? Enriched with the goodness of desi-ghee, our curry pastes are made with locally sourced, fresh ingredients. No purees, no dehydrated tasteless powders, no artificial additives, no preservatives of any sorts. Nothing.
Since, we’re extremely proud of our mom-approved badge of honour we don’t take any shortcuts lest we lose it. Made in small batches in our very own kitchen, all our recipes are vetted by moms to make sure they meet the standards set by their generation and the ones before too.
Easy to carry and cook, you can enjoy the taste of ma-ke-haat-ka-khaana anywhere, anytime, in just 15-30 minutes! So, what are you waiting for? Here’s the perfect way to surprise mom with her favourite dish, with the help of CURRYiT. Check out our range here.