Chicken karhai with mint • Blueberry muffins

New member

Curryclub  gained a new member this past week: a dapper chap called Alan. We picked him up last weekend from the excellent North London Cats Protection League (sadly not the furry football team I imagine; http://www.northlondon.cats.org.uk). The little man only has one eye but that’s not holding him back; a couple of days ago he stole a sausage from an unattended toad-in-the-hole and was still clutching onto it when I removed him from the scene of the crime…

Martin Creed, “What’s the point of it”

I visited Martin Creed’s new exhibition “What’s the point of it” at the Hayward Gallery on Friday. The highlights were the giant sythe-like neon sign spinning round at the start of the exhibition and the balloon-filled room mid-way round, which made me feel a bit like an atom. All in all an enjoyable evening, but there were a few crummy items along the way. Special thanks to the kind attendant who went out of his way to point my mother and I out onto one of the balconies in the rain so that we didn’t miss the giant close-up 12 x 12ft projection of a penis…

Tonight’s recipes

Tonight’s dinner was a speedy Curry Easy chicken karhai recipe from Madhur Jaffrey. Essentiallly it’s just marinated chicken quickly stir-fried, and with chopped mint added right at the end. It was pretty tasty but nothing particularly nuanced or memorable. I imagine that it would be quite nice in a pitta or wrap with some raita and greenery, though.

Pudding was blueberry muffins a la Mary Berry (or Mezza Bezza as I like to call her). They were okay, but pretty small and a bit lacking in sugar for my tastes – definitely not the big pillowy objects of my muffin-y dreams.

Marks: 6/10

Getting spicy south of the river

Evening all. Big change is afoot at Curryclub HQ as we are still busy flat hunting at the moment and pounding the pavements of SE7 et al every Saturday. We’re struggling to find a nice place with a separate kitchen/lounge – curry cooking doesn’t combine too well with open plan living sadly as the spice tends to linger on upholstery.

*What are your favourite curry spots south of the river?*

Any recommendations for Blackheath/Greenwich/Westcombe Park/Charlton neck of the woods would be very much appreciated. I stumbled across this little gem (above) on the small retail park near Westcombe Park Station at the weekend – full of exciting goodies. I’m also looking forward to checking out one or two of these clever crowd-sourced local foraging maps: fallingfruit.org/maps.

Thank youx

Dishoom • Covent Garden

Diwali sweets from Mrs Parmar

Hugh F-W in full flow

I don’t think I’ve ever eaten in the same restaurant twice in one week (with the exception of this Parisian pattiserie – http://www.gerard-mulot.com – although I’m not sure that pastries count), but I did just that this fine November. Seeking refuge from impending middle age, “soft search” mortage quotes and impending recolation south of the Thames I went to Dishoom (www.dishoom.com) in Covent Garden twice in seven days, seeking refuge in an orgy of sleek design, spicy cocktails and creamy chai. By gum it ain’t half good.

Sadly they don’t take bookings for parties of less than 6 people, but the length of the queue on both bitter evenings was testament to the restaurant’s quality and smily young servers distributed cups of chai to queue-ees to chivy them along. Inside, the staff are mic’d up like pilots and the interior is slick, with very little in the way of naff faux-Indian decor: think polished chrome, an Escher-esque tiled floor and comfy leather booths. The food is perfect for sharing and the accompanying chutneys are incredibly fresh. Standout dishes were vada pau (a potato patty in a light-as-air bun), rich black daal, a substantial paneer tikka and chocolate masala chai  – all brilliantly spiced and refreshingly lacking in grease so that we didn’t have to waddle out afterwards.

Pictured above are delicious Diwali sweet courtesy of my friend Emma’s mother-in-law and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall making sweet and sour pork at this week’s “nose to tail” Pig Idea event (thepigidea.org) in Trafalgar Square (not an EDL rally, as my photography skills seem to suggest). The free pork pibil tacos from Wahacas were superb and worth the short wait.

I’m excited about the possibility of moving soon, but after six years in Kentish Town I’ll be sad to leave my old curry haunts behind  – please send recommendations for great South London curry restaurants. So far I’ve heard good things about Ganapati in Peckham and there’s always Tooting’s South Indian delights…merci buckets.

Marks: an unprecedented 10/10!

Spicy lamb chops • Baby aubergines with picking spices (achari baigan) • Okra with carom seeds (ajwaini bhindi)

Hi curry peeps,

Hope you’re all well. It’s been a funny old weekend here. We had another family funeral to go to on Friday – a beautiful woodland burial near Norwich. (We had a lovely eggs Benedict at the cosy Talc cafe in town beforehand – http://www.talcinnorwich.co.uk – which I’d highly recommended). We were feeling rather drained when we got back so we got a heartwarming takeaway from our old friend the Bengal Lancer. I even spotted our upstairs neighbours having a romantic date there when I went to collect the food (incidentally, this entitles you to a 20% discount).

After a mammoth lie-in we came up fighting again on Saturday and had a lovely lunch at Phonecia in Kentish Town (amazing as ever) before exploring a couple of properties with Open House London (www.londonopenhouse.org) – a great opportunity to find the hidden gems in your local area. My favourite was Philip Hughes’ studio – an incredible space with a multitude of mirrors and a spa space hidden in a cosy white ceramic bubble. We also popped in to see the Thomas Hardy tree near St Pancras (pictured above) – a curious nub of history among all the new building around King’s Cross.

With the help of Mr CC and my lovely sister-in-law (cook extraordinaire) we rustled up a delicious spicy dinner using the Food of the Grand Trunk Road cookbook. I’ve also just invested in a copy of Rick Stein’s new India book on her recommendation so watch this space. I’m interested in trying out the Pondicherry-style prawn curry with preserved lemons and fresh herbs. Has anyone tried it out?

We’ve got a busy few weekends coming up – Mr M’s bday, our wedding anniversary and an impromptu trip to Paree, but I’ll do my best to keep in touch.

Marks: 8/10 (please excuse the lack of actual curry content in this post).

Cinnamon Soho review – what a load of (delicious) balls

The scene was set for a great evening – drinks at Two Floors and dinner with two of my ex-colleagues from Rough Guides. I was seriously excited to be visiting Cinnamon Soho (http://www.cinnamon-kitchen.com/Soho-Home)– little sister of Cinnamon Kitchen – at last. First impressions were good – sleek metallic and dark wood decor with little to suggest a curry restaurant other than the chic green cinnamon leaf motif on the wall. For starters we shared a £9 selection of “balls”. Despite the unprepossessing name this selection of fried delights – including crab cakes, potato bondas, vegetable shikampur, spiced game and Bangla-scotch eggs, plus accompanying chutneys – was the highlight of our meal and definitely deserves its plaudit of being one of Time Out’s 100 best dishes in London for 2012. I chose a lychee cocktail to kick off with too. It was beautifully presented but I found the blue curacao a bit overwhelming – more personal preference than anything else.For our main courses my friends chose the spice-crusted hake and tandoori-spiced chicken in a cashew nut korma sauce, both of which I had a quick nibble of and which tasted divine. I decided to push the boat out and try the menu’s hottest option,  Rajasthani lamb curry, or laal maas, which was billed as “fiery”. The curry was incredible – richly flavoured and pleasantly warm and flavourful rather than painful to eat. Thumbs up all round.We finished dinner at about 9pm but didn’t leave the restaurant until about 11pm after all our chinwagging and the staff were happy to let us sit and chat. Please excuse my poor photo (above) – I didn’t have time to photograph anything else before the hungry masses (including myself) tucked in!

Marks: 9/10. The bill came to £30 a head for starters, mains, cocktails and coffees, which I think was pretty reasonable. There are also some cheaper (and still-enticing) set-menu options for those who are looking for less of a blowout.

I’m going to a wedding in Kenilworth this weekend so please bear with me on the cooking front – I’m looking forward to getting back onto the recipe-testing bandwagon soon.

 

The Queen of Sheba • Kentish Town

I’m just back from a lovely long weekend in Inverness, which was all about fresh seafood and whisky porridge, so I’m cheating with a Curryclub restaurant review this week. Last Tuesday we went for dinner at the Queen of Sheba in Kentish Town (www.thequeenofsheba.co.uk). It’s the only Ethiopian restaurant I’ve even been to, but so good I’ve never been temped to go elsewhere (except Ethiopia itself). You might not associate the Horn of Africa with great food but the curries here are incredible – richly spiced and stew-like, and not too hot either. The restaurant interior is cosy and womb-like, decorated with intriguing wooden artefacts and masks, and  infused with the tantalising scent of coffee ceremonies –  fresh coffee  beans and frankincense . The service is sometimes a little slow but the staff are so friendly and gentle this is soon forgiven. Your whole meal comes served on a moon-like injera flatbread made from teff flour, which arrives under an enormous, brightly-coloured cone of woven raffia; the texture of the injera is crumpet-like and it tastes taste slightly sour, but moreishly so. The curries are spooned out so that each person has a portion, and then they are scooped-up by hand using the injera and eaten sans-cutlery. All of the dishes on the menu here are delicious without exception, however, the derek tibs, shiro w’et and gomen are all standout options. Don’t forget a St George’s Beer to wash everything down.

Simple supper – beef keema pitta breads

Tonight’s dinner was beef keema in wholemeal pitta breads; very quick and super tasty – I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s leftovers. I also booked a table for dinner at Cinnamon Soho in early June – can’t wait!

Marks: 7/10

The Bengal Lancer • Kentish Town

Bank holiday Monday found us at The Bengal Lancer in Kentish Town. The original inspiration for Kentishtowncurryclub this was only my second visit of the year as I’ve been cooking so much at home and I was surprised to see that the decor had changed slightly. The modern-art splash paintings have been replaced with old black-and-white portraits from India that immediately make the whole restaurant much cosier and more elegant. The service was as effusive and attentive as ever, without being overwhelming, and the curries were all top of their game, featuring fresh spices, natural colourings and a reassuring lack of oily puddles. The menu here boasts plenty of unusual options that you won’t find in other curry houses, including guste kabul (a tangy lamb and chickpea curry) and ghost hydrabadi (a creamy, mustardy leg of lamb). The standout dishes this visit were a lamb pasanda as rich and comforting as a hot bath and a good book, and the goru mangsho (diced beef curry), for it’s brilliant garum masala seasoning. I got chatting with the manager JJ on the way out and he told me that he has plans to publish a cookbook in the pipeline – happy days!

 

Marks: 8/10. Looking forward to a return visit.

Sherlock and spice shopping

Bitter gourds

Spicy bounty

Party time – jalebi

Sherlock set

Rubbish picture of Free-batch – deerstalker just visible

I walked home this evening and decided to take a turn down Drummond Street (near Euston) on a whim as I know it’s a bit of a curry hot-spot. I got a bit more than I bargained for, stumbling across a full-on tv set and hordes of simpering girls. The street sign had been replaced with a Baker Street one and it soon became apparent that filming for the BBC’s Sherlock series was well underway. I didn’t hang around too long, but Benedict Cumberbatch seemed very sweet and gracious towards his fan girls (and boys).

I came home with a big payload for Curryclub –bitter gourds, dried mango powder, mace, chilli, and coriander powder from Plentiful foods Ltd,  and two jalebi from Ambala (only 64p) – all in all a very successful evening. I just need to decide what to cook this weekend now…any suggestions?

How to mix spices

Curryclub is on hold this week as I’ve been poorly recently and am peddling frantically to catch up with myself this week. Never fear, though, as plans are afoot for a slap-up feast on Easter Monday, and the family I stayed with for 6 months in India are going to send me some recipes soon.

In the meantime I’m really keen to do a one-day Indian cookery course in London so that I can learn how to mix spices properly; which ones taste best together, when to add them, how much to use etc. Can anyone recommend a good course?