From the humble beginnings of butter chicken, curries are now a popular part of the Western menu.
The origins of many people's favourite curry, butter chicken or murgh makhani, are a little confusing.
Some say it can be traced back to Delhi during the Mughal Empire founded in the 16th century, others that it's merely a different spin on tikka masala, the famously inherited national dish of
Britain.
Supposedly, an Englishman was served tandoori chicken by an Indian chef and complained it was dry and unappetising so the chef made a tomato curry sauce in which he submerged the tandoori bird.
If you believe that story then butter chicken found its roots in Britain less than 100 years ago rather than in India centuries ago. But whatever its beginnings, butter chicken is now ubiquitous on Indian restaurant menus throughout the world - even in India.
The typical Indian curry is a spicy stew-like dish. In India each dish has its own sauce base. In Britain, Indian restaurants often work from an all-purpose gravy, adding ingredients to change the flavour for different dishes. In the 1960s in Britain, Indian food became a staple of the working classes, being a cheaper but more cheerful alternative to traditional British takeaways. Soon, though, the Brits wanted to be able to recreate the dishes at home - so curry powder, made mostly of masala spice, became more readily available.
Traditional Indian curries, however, are hugely diverse in flavour and style - some red, yellow or brown; some with only five spices, and others with 20 spices or more. Generally the styles can be divided into the regions from which they hail.
There are those from Andhra/Telugu for large amounts of brown spices, chilli, fenugreek and asafoetida, often referred to as "devil's dung" because of its potent smell. Bengali, Bangladeshi and Oriya curries are predominant in fresh seafood with flavourings of mustard oil and popped mustard seeds in oil; Gujarati/Thali with wheat-flour roti bread, Sabzi (green herb rice dish) and stir-fried spicy and sweet dishes; Karnataka with dhals; Malayali curries (kerala) are fragrant with shredded coconut and coconut milk; Pakistani/Mughlai contain dry spice rubs, garlic and vinegar; Punjabi curries with ghee (clarified butter), cream and masala; Pashtun with cereals, yoghurt and nuts and Tamil's distinctive flavour and aroma of curry leaves, tamarind (sweet and sour pods) and turmeric.
For making curries at home, use fresh spices.
Soak spice seeds in water for 10 minutes, drain and cook in a frypan until they pop and smell delicious.
One of the magical masala blends is Bombay's Goda Masala comprising cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, sesame, coriander seeds, coconut and poppy seeds, which kicks lentils into orbit with great flavour. Another favourite of mine is jaggery, dehydrated sugar cane juice which I soak the sweet Gulab Jamun (waffle balls) in with rosewater and saffron and serve with hung lime yoghurt.
