OK, here is my recipe for Killer Curry Sauce.
You can make it as hot as you wish, but the listed ingredients will make a tasty and spicy curry.
KILLER CURRY SAUCE
2 large onions, chopped - Red onion preferred
3 large cloves garlic - minced
2 carrots - chopped
2 chili peppers, seeded - Jalapeño , red chili, or Chipotle. This is where you control the heat. I like Chipotle
2 apples, chopped - Asian Pears are superb here
1 small fennel bulb and tops - chopped
1 "finger" of Ginger - sliced thin ( about 1/2Tbs to 1Tbs)
1/4 cup Coriander leaves ( Cilantro) - or use Parsley
1 3/4 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
1Tbs Asian cooking sauce - Oyster, soy, or any of the many commercial sauce/marinades
3/4 cup coconut milk - use cream of coconut for a sweeter curry
1/2 cup butter, melted - or you can use olive oil
1-2 tablespoons curry powder - See below, or use commercial Madras, Hot Madras, or Red Curry powder, or use Garam Marsala for a milder flavor.
Put the soft ingredients in the food processor and pulse until chopped. Add the stock, soy, and coconut milk/cream and pulse a few more times.Don't over-chop. Drizzle in the melted butter/oil as you pulse. Add the Curry Powder/Garam Marsala a little at a time ,tasting as you add. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Make your own Curry powder and or Garam Marsala by grinding any combination of the following spices in a spice grinder of food processor. Put the spices in a tightly sealed container and store in the refrigerator up to six months.
1 Coriander seed
1 Cumin seed
1 to 1/2 Cinnamon
1 to 1/2 Turmeric
1/2 Mustard seed
1/2 Cardamom
1/2 Cloves
1/2 to 1/4 Dried Coriander leaves ( dried parsley)
1/2 to 1/4 Dried Curry leaves
1/4 Nutmeg
1/4 Anise Seed
1/4 Ginger Powder
1/4 Dried Red Peppers (* more for hotter powder)
1/4 Dried Basil leaves
1/4 Dried Bay Leaves
1/4 to 1/8 Peppercorns - Black, red, white ,pink
The amounts listed are by ratio. Start with the hard spices and grind to a medium fineness. Add the softer dry ingredients and grind together until uniform - Just enough to make a good mix. Don't over grind.
It is best to add half of the spices you are playing with and then add the rest a little at a time and play with the flavor blend until you like the results.
The type of red peppers will control the heat of the Curry powder. Chipotle peppers will make the powder more smokey... Ghost peppers will make it insanely hot, Red Chilies will make it medium, no chilies at all will make it milder.To make this as Garam Marsala, just leave out the Curry ingredients (Dried Peppers, Turmeric, Mustard, and curry leaves) , and grind up the more aromatic seeds and leaves..
Be creative and use what you have.
You can add tomatoes, tomatillos, cucumber, celery, etc. when making the Killer Curry above and change it into the best SALSA your friends ever stuck a chip into.
