Page 253 - YC Cooking School

Quick and Easy Dinners 1

yuppiechef.com/cooking-school.htm

Seven tips for hassle-free chicken curry

1. Temper the spices
Tempering is a technique used to awaken whole or powdered spices in hot oil. Stay away
from olive oil here, as it denatures when exposed to high heat. Coconut, peanut, sesame or
pretty much any of the other oils are perfect for releasing the flavour of the spices into the
oil. Once the flavour has been infused, your can pour the oil over starch, combine it with
yoghurt, use it in curries or even use it as a marinade for meats and vegetables.

2. Colour the onions
Sautéing onions for curry is slightly different to other styles of cooking. The perfect onions
have been simmered until they start to take on colour, adding a subtle sweetness, which
maintains the balance in the finished product.

3. Use whole spices
Keep your spices fresh and pungent by buying them whole and storing them in airtight
containers. Crushing whole spices in a pestle and mortar is always better for the flavour
than using already-ground spices. Whole spices also keep fresh for longer and you can

pound as much or as little as you need for a meal. Remember to grind up your spices just
before adding them to your dish. If kept in a dry, cool place, whole spices can stay fresh for
up to a year.

4. Re-awaken spices

If your whole spices start to lose their aromatics, it’s really easy to re-awaken them. All you
need to do is crush them and put them in hot oil, or just toast them in a dry pan, before
pounding them into a plumb of powder to drop into your dish.

1/2