When making curry, there is no need to hurry-
If the curry cooks longer, the flavor will be stronger...


What is curry?
The definitive answer to that question is far beyond the scope of my studies, which are based on the specific curries I like to eat.

All I know is that I had spent most of my life blissfully unaware of curry, and then all of a sudden I realized that I was surrounded by curries of all kinds. There were curries that I loved, curries I did not care for at all, and curries that I had not thought of as a curry at the time.
 
In Thailand, many of the curry dishes were regional. This was generally experienced as Northern vs Southern Thai cuisines. So depending on where I was, there may have been local versions of the regional Thai curry dishes which were often only vaguely similar to what I remembered in Bangkok or Chiang Mai.

In Northern Thailand I might ask for a Southern dish, and they would prepare their Northern interpretation of the dish. If I asked for Burmese pork curry or Khao soy in Bangkok, they would most likely tell me it is a Northern dish and that they don't make that in Bangkok!

And, if I was out in the country they would generally do their best to make anything I asked for, but it would be limited to their knowledge of the dish and whatever ingredients were available to them. In some cases however, they may have had even better, fresher ingredients and spices than in the cities, and surprise me with some local variant of the dish.

Superimposed over those differences were the influences and spices of the bordering countries, and even the countries bordering those countries. Indeed, border villages and towns had some of the most interesting marketplaces in Thailand. Not just commercial trade items either, there were many exotic spices, fruits, and vegetables, as well as an amazing assortment of flowering plants and orchids which are collected in the jungles.

When I lived for a time in a hill-country village of Western Thailand a stone's throw from the border with Burma (Myanmar), the family I stayed with were originally from Karen State in Burma, therefore I assumed that many of the dishes which they had served had their origins in Burma. To me, many of their everyday dishes seemed more akin to Chinese food.

However, on special occasions they made various soups and what I would now refer to as curries. I clearly remember those occasions because they would require a special trip to the daily marketplace in the town of Sangkhlaburi (pop. 40,000), a thirty-minute drive away.

In their village of Huay Malai, which was about as close to Burma as it was to Sangkhlaburi, there was only the weekly market that was held at a local Buddhist monastery each Thursday morning, where many day to day food and household items could be bought or traded for. But the special occasion dishes often required special ingredients, a particular meat, spices, sauces, packages of dried mushrooms or herbs, and usually fresh rice noodles made-to-order in Sangkhlaburi. 

And then out of nowhere, there was a celebration hosted by a woman whose son was going off to university, and where it came from out in this remote jungle village I never found out, but there was a feast of amazing Indian food for perhaps the entire congregation of the church. Not being familiar with Indian cuisine, I was pretty happy with what they were serving even though I could not describe it to you now. (my memory seems to have been affected by the fact that there was also ice being served, only the second time I had seen ice in the six months I was living in Huay Malai.)

While my past understanding of what curry would, should, or might be was associated with Indian cuisine, compared with the Thai curries I was familiar with through my travels around Thailand, there was nothing in those several Indian dishes that jumped out at me as being "Curry".

Yet it was there in the hill-country that I had enjoyed my first tastes of the home style curries which had nothing to do with any of the standard Thai curry dishes. These were made from scratch and featured whatever protein was available. There were also some delicious vegetable curries, but at the time, many of the curry dishes that didn't follow the Thai standards, didn't register as curry dishes in my mind.

My absolute favorite curry to order wherever I thought they might have it was the Burmese pork curry known as Kaeng hang le, which I had first enjoyed at the Old Chiangmai Cultural Center in Chiang Mai, Thailand's second largest city.

Although most cooks and street vendors in Thailand are well-stocked with a variety of ingredients and spices with which they are most skillful and quick in preparing a dish to order, I quickly realized that if my Kaeng hang le was not a featured menu item which has been slow-cooked, it was only going to turn out to be something prepared with similar tasting ingredients, and the pork therefore would not be tender. Also, if purchased from a food vendor on the street or in a marketplace, the ingredients might be more attune to the local preferences, which may have replaced tender pork shoulder with thick bacon-like slabs of pork which were mainly layers of fat, resulting in a similar tasting, but much greasier version.

There was also a remarkable version of Kaeng hang le I found in Mae Hong Son which while not stewed to tenderness, did retain the same unmistakable flavor, yet it was a meat only dish, and more the texture of Chinese barbecued pork or Mexican carnitas rubbed with spices. While I was initially disappointed that it was not the stewed version I was hoping for, after the very first bite, I considered ordering another plate!

The thing is, and I have searched high and low, where I live it is quite difficult to find the necessary ingredients to make authentic Kaeng hang le, whether I have the recipe for the stewed or barbecued variants I had enjoyed or not. (which I don't) Maybe someday.

But the many curry dishes I had enjoyed in the hill-country of the Thai/Burma border area seemed to be made with simple ingredients that I should be able to find at home.

When I returned home, I mentioned all of the different curry dishes I had encountered to a Korean friend who is the owner of Hawaiian Bar-B-Que where I bought my dinner several nights per week. In addition to her amazing Hawaiian Bar-B-Que items, she is a remarkably talented Asian Chef.

Since I was a regular customer, she began including this or that non-menu item along with my order, often saying they were leftovers of whatever she made for her and her husband's lunch. Nearly everything she shared with me (I don't care for seafood) was delicious and unusual, at least to me. What really amazed me was that she could take simple ingredients and make a dozen different delicious Korean soups, all of which should have been on the menu. I often told her to open a soup restaurant, that we Americans love soup! (she sometimes made a larger batch of soup and gave me a serving everyday until it was gone)

She was also expert in making many different types of Kimchi. Like curries, I didn't care for some types of Kimchi too much and since she always wanted to know what I liked or did not like, I went so far as to tell her so.

Yet one day she sent along another surprise container with my order which I thought at first glance to be Kimchi, but I was so astounded by its unique taste that I put my fork down and called her on the phone to ask her what this incredible dish was. I could imagine her holding the phone out and looking at it as if it were crazy as she said "It is Kimchi". I said, "no no no, I don't like Kimchi, and whatever this is - I love it". I could hear her telling her husband what I had said in Korean, then I heard them laughing. She got back on the phone and corrected herself: "It is old Kimchi". I was flabbergasted that it was the same Kimchi I did not care for, only aged and fermented. It tasted of a dozen indiscernible flavors from some ancient treasure chest of forgotten spices.
 
What does this have to do with curry?
It's all about the transformations that ingredients go through between the cutting board and the serving dish.

Soon after I had brought up curries to my Korean friend, she made me her version of curry, which tasted more like the style of the hill-country family dishes than the Thai curries. She then told me that her curry was made in the Japanese style, and over the next few years she made it for me with many variations of ingredients and heat. She even showed me the curry flakes she used, and told me about the various curry-blocks and powders which are available in stores. I began to see that starting with the basic ingredients, you could tailor a curry to go well with a variety of meats and vegetables.

As I began to study the history of curry in Japan, I learned that curry came to Japan via the British occupation forces of India. That was when a light bulb popped-on above my head reminding me of the similar curries of Western Thailand, prepared by Burmese immigrants, whose own country had been colonized by the British, and occupied by the Japanese.
I was beginning to see a pattern. 

My daughter-in-law's father makes an amazing chicken/potato curry with a Malaysian curry powder, and it also tasted like the family curries of the Thai hill-country, so I plan on getting a jar of the Malaysian curry for future experiments. (Pacific Giant Pure Hot Indian Curry Powder) Tasting the Malaysian curry and seeing its jar strengthened the thought that while many optional ingredients for curry come with caveats due to their packaging and possible spoilage, various curry blocks, powders, and spices such as garam masala, are handy investments to have in your pantry if they are properly stored.  

Eventually, since I had all of the necessary ingredients readily available at local Asian markets, I began my own experiments with Japanese-style curry, and although I have a long way to go, I think my recipe is one that takes the flavors up a few notches beyond the simple curry-in-a-hurry block recipes. (which are delicious nonetheless)

Since my favorite curry Kaeng hang le is a slow cooked curry, my recipe also calls for slow-cooking, and since slow cooking makes the vegetable ingredients melt into the broth, I add some of the veggies for that specific purpose, and then reserve some veggies for a proper Japanese finish presentation of larger bite-sized veggies which have not disintegrated into the sauce during cooking.

To be sure, this page may be updated each time I make curry.

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So what is Japanese curry?
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According to Wikipedia:

Curry (カレー karē) is one of the most popular dishes in Japan. It is commonly served in three main forms: curry rice (カレーライス karē raisu, curry over rice), curry udon (curry over noodles), and curry bread (a curry-filled pastry). Curry rice is most commonly referred to simply as "curry" (カレー karē).
A wide variety of vegetables and meats are used to make Japanese curry. The basic vegetables are onions, carrots, and potatoes. For the meat, beef, pork, and chicken are the most popular. Katsu-karē is a breaded deep-fried cutlet (usually pork or chicken) with curry sauce.
Curry was introduced to Japan during the Meiji era (1868–1912) by the British, at a time when India was under the colonial rule of the British Raj. The dish became popular and available for purchase in supermarkets and restaurants in the late 1960s. It has been adapted since its introduction to Japan, and is so widely consumed that it can be called a national dish.

As curry was introduced to Japan via British cuisine, it was originally considered to be Western cuisine. This Western-style curry co-exists alongside Indian-style curry, which has become popular since the increase in Indian restaurants in the 1990s. Western-style curry is influenced by stews mixed with curry powder, which were popular amongst the British Navy. The Imperial Japanese Navy adopted curry from the Royal Navy to prevent beriberi, and now the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's Friday menu is curry.

Curry sauce (カレーソース karē sōsu) is served on top of cooked rice to make curry rice. Curry sauce is made by frying together curry powder, flour, and oil, along with other ingredients, to make roux; the roux is then added to stewed meat and vegetables, and then simmered until thickened. Adding potatoes to curry sauce was introduced by William S. Clark of the Sapporo Agricultural College, due to rice shortages at the time.
In Japanese homes, curry sauce is most commonly made from instant curry roux, which is available in block and powder forms, and contains curry powder, flour, oils and various flavourings. Ease of preparation, and the wide variety and availability of instant curry mixes, has made curry rice very popular, as it is very easy to make compared to many other Japanese dishes. Pre-made curry is available in vacuum-sealed bags that can be reheated in boiling water.
Instant curry roux was first sold in powder form by House Foods in 1926, and in block form by S&B Foods in 1956. In 2007, Japanese domestic shipments of instant curry roux was 82.7 billion yen. Market share for household use in 2007 was captured almost entirely by House Foods (59.0%), S&B Foods (25.8%) and Ezaki Glico (9.4%).
Vacuum-sealed curry sauce, prepared by heating the retort pouch in hot water or the microwave, is also popular. As of financial 2007, curry sauce is the largest single category of vacuum-sealed foods in Japan, making up over 30% of sales.

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Now that the preliminaries are out of the way, the following is my current recipe for a tasty and nutritious beef curry. While the hill-country curries I enjoyed were rustic in their presentation, the Japanese style curry calls for a few touches of presentation such as the Ran-Giri technique of cutting vegetables in irregular shapes. Along the way I will throw in some options for ingredients and preparation, so do read everything before trying the recipe, and above all have fun throwing this together.

                                                  ***   Beef Curry   ***

This recipe is based on S&B brand Japanese style curry block and curry powder, and is not meant to represent a home-made from-scratch Japanese curry. In fact, most Japanese don't make curry from scratch. Yet I believe the results of this recipe will compete with most Japanese restaurant curries that you will find in the United States, and it will likely be better the next time you make it with your own refinements.

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Shopping List
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1.5 lbs beef round steak cut into 1 inch or larger pieces. (trim off fat)

3 lg onions
veggie base: 2 sliced thinly across the grain, then cut the disks into quarters.
finish:           1 *coarsely sliced.
*Remove top and bottom, slice in half cross-ways, then cut halves into eighths vertically, which will give you nice bite-sized wedges.

6 large stalks of celery (with leaves)
veggie base: 3 stalks + leaves from all 6 stalks cut cross-ways 1/4 in thick.
finish:           3 stalks cut cross-ways diagonally 1 1/2 in thick.

6 lg carrots-peeled
veggie base: 3 cut cross-ways 1/4 in thick.
finish:           3 cut irregularly 1 in thick. (ran-giri style)

8 medium to large white button mushrooms
veggie base: 4 chopped.
finish:           4 thinly sliced vertically.

fresh ginger - thumb-sized piece, minced.
lemon grass - 1 - 6 to 8 inch heart of stalk sliced cross-ways 1/8 in thick.

8 lg cloves garlic-peeled
veggie base: 4 cloves - chopped, crushed, and minced.
sauce:           4 cloves - thinly sliced cross-ways.

2 med potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1 inch thick *wedges - soak in bowl with cold water for ten minutes, then drain, rinse, refill, and let soak till needed, approx 25 minutes before curry is ready to serve.
*After peeling the potatoes, cut cross-ways into 1 in thick disks, cut disks into eighths vertically. This will give you some nice bite-sized wedges. If you prefer, cut the disks into quarters for larger wedges and adjust cooking time for the extra thickness.

3 tablespoons olive oil

garlic salt for drained beef cubes.
(Note: other than the salt contained in the beef broth, this is the only salt we will add)

freshly ground black pepper to taste.

1/2 Lg pkg S & B Golden Curry Sauce Mix med hot 8.4 oz
(8.4 oz pkg. = 2 foil sealed packs of 4.2 oz each, recipe uses one 4.2 oz foil pack)

1 tablespoon S & B Curry Powder.

1 tablespoon garam masala. (Optional - if you have it use it)

1-2 tablespoons Cholula or Tapatio hot sauce. (or 1 teaspoon minced chilies of your preference)

4 cups 50% reduced sodium beef broth.

Note: For larger batch just double everything except the hot sauce/chilies, always make sure to add hot sauce to taste. (I prefer beef curry to be a bit spicier than chicken or pork curry)

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Prep Veggies
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This first time out, let's just prep everything before starting.
Once you are used to the flow of starting the onions cooking and then peeling, cutting, chopping, mincing and crushing the other ingredients, you can ad lib the order or simply *prep to make it tomorrow. Starting everything after all of the ingredients are washed, peeled, prepped and separated will make the initial experience more orderly and keep the work area tidy.  
*I sometimes coat the bottom of the pan with oil, turn the flame off and layer the chopped veggies cold as follows to prep ahead of the time I plan to cook, then when ready to begin cooking all I have to do is turn on the flame. This could include prepping the veggies the day before, covering the pan, and placing it in the refrigerator. This also applies to placing the large-cut finish veggies in a sealed bowl in the fridge. 

The potatoes however, should be peeled, cut, and soaked the day they are to be cooked.

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Rinse, trim, and peel all veggies, then allow them to drain in a colander.

We will be cooking-down 2 out of the three onions, and half of the mushrooms, carrots, garlic, and celery for a mirepoix veggie base. Except for the remaining garlic, the other half of the veggies can be prepped for finish, placed into a covered bowl, and refrigerated  for later.

In a dutch oven, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, and heat over low flame to coat the bottom of the pan.

Slice 2 lg onions thinly cross-ways, cut disks into quarters, throw into pan and bring to a medium flame to begin to cook-down the onions. Grind on a layer of freshly ground black pepper.
Stir frequently.

Slice 4 lg cloves of garlic lengthwise, quarter cross-ways, then crush and mince - add to onions.
*I use a Pyrex measuring cup to crush the chopped garlic on a cutting board, then
mince the crushed garlic. I then crush it again, and mince it once again.
Stir frequently.

Once the onions and garlic have begun to melt down and eventually sweat, about the time it takes to slice the remaining veggies, lower the flame to keep it at its lowest simmer.
Stir frequently.

Chop 1/2 of the mushrooms, slice 1/2 the celery, all celery leaves, and carrots cross-ways one quarter inch thick, add to the onions and garlic, and heat over medium flame to bring veggies back to a low boil, then reduce flame to maintain a low boil.

Coat the top of the veggies again with freshly ground black pepper, and stir. If in doubt over the next half hour, add more black pepper if you like, stirring every few minutes. After about ten minutes, reduce the flame to stay at its lowest simmer and cover. There should be a fair amount of liquid by now, so stirring is not as critical.

It may initially seem that there is a lot in the pan, but the onions will begin to melt, and the mushrooms will shrink, significantly lowering the level, cooking down, and concentrating the flavors.
*Option: add a tablespoon of garam masala to the veggies.

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Note: While I have not tried preparing caramelized onions as many Japanese curry recipes would call for prior to adding the other vegetables, it remains on my list of future experiments. Caramelization calls for salt to extract moisture from the onions, I prefer to retain the moisture from the onions within the veggie base for flavor, and skip the added salt.

Up to the point where I would add the seasoned meat and ginger/curry sauce, my method of cooking-down the veggies would also be suitable for a soup or stew. The same thought applies to the finish (non-potato) vegetables of this recipe, which after being added to the veggie base along with the meat and beef broth and cooked for an hour, would be plenty tender without falling apart. And of course, the directions and warnings from the recipe would apply to adding and cooking the potatoes for a stew; add them last, don't under-cook, don't overcook.

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Ginger/Curry Sauce base
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*Optionally, start with this step and simmer longer- if so, add more broth as needed.

In a 1qt sauce pan, bring 1/2 cup of beef broth to a boil and then turn the flame to its lowest setting.

Add the minced ginger and sliced lemon grass to the broth and simmer covered for ten to twenty minutes or longer at its lowest setting.
*Crushing, grinding, or pureeing the ginger and lemon grass before boiling may intensify the flavor...experiments are in order.

The same pan will be used for simmering the beef, so simply strain the boiled ginger/lemon grass broth into a cup or bowl and set aside, do not rinse-out the pan. >>*Discard the ginger and lemon grass solids.<<

*NOTE: I don't care for the texture/aftertaste of ginger root in my curry (and the lemon grass MUST be removed), so I believe it is beneficial to the overall flavor of the curry to boil the ginger along with the lemon grass, and then strain the ginger and lemon grass solids out.
No worries, there will still be plenty of ginger/lemon grass flavor, and it will be much more harmonious with the other ingredients.

+Optionally, for a more complex flavor profile, add a finger-sized piece of *turmeric root thinly sliced cross-ways, and a few crosscut slices of **galangal to simmer along with the ginger and lemon grass, all of which would be strained-out and discarded.

+I say optionally because the turmeric and galangal are usually sold in packages which are substantially more than what is needed for this recipe, are more expensive than the fresh ginger and lemon grass, and are usually seasonally available only in Asian markets.

While the fresh ginger and lemon grass are inexpensive and available in most grocery stores, unless you do a lot of Asian cooking, the galangal and turmeric may spoil in the fridge before you can use them again. If you are lucky, you can find either an Asian market, or an International market which sells them loose by the pound.

*Turmeric is like a cross between ginger and a spicy carrot in taste. Slice it thinly on a paper plate as it can stain your fingers and your cutting board orange.

**Galangal, another ginger-like root, has a larger diameter and can be woody and tough to cut, - be careful, and slice cross-ways in 1/8 inch thick slices, or if necessary, whittle off pieces to make up a half-inch or so of the galangal.

Again, throwing the sliced/minced ginger, turmeric, lemon grass, and galangal into a blender may help intensify the flavors while they are boiling, and remember that they will ALL be strained out when finished boiling.

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Spiced Meat Broth prep (not to be confused with beef broth ingredient)
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Rinse and drain beef cubes in a colander, then toss and coat well with garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper. Allow to rest covered with a wet paper towel for ten minutes.

Using the same saucepan used for the ginger and lemon grass, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, and heat over medium low flame to coat pan, add the four cloves of garlic thinly sliced cross-ways, and stir to toast but DO NOT BURN, stirring frequently for several minutes.

Add the beef cubes and bring to a medium flame for a high simmer, and stir to sear the cubes on all sides. The meat will begin to sweat and there will be more of a bubbling broth than browning.
Stir frequently to sear all sides.
*Optionally, brown the beef cubes in olive oil in a frying pan and add the sliced garlic during the last few minutes- after browning add some beef broth to rinse the drippings in the frying pan and add the contents to the ginger/lemon grass/beef broth as follows.

Once the beef cubes have begun to sweat and simmered with the garlic for 10-15 minutes, add 1/2 cup beef broth and the strained ginger/lemon grass broth, then bring back to a low boil, cover and simmer at its lowest setting for another 15 minutes.

Needless to say, your kitchen will be well-scented by now, make sure to go outside a few times so you can better enjoy the aromas when you return.

This is a good time to finalize the cooked veggies, so add the remaining beef broth to the cooked-down veggies, and with a potato masher or a hand blender, quickly mash/blend the cooked veggies into a puree'. Then add all of the remaining large-cut finish veggies EXCEPT the potatoes.
Bring back to a boil, cover, and reduce the flame to its lowest setting.

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Curry Sauce part one
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Carefully cut 1/4 of lg pkg of curry roux into smaller pieces, add to the spiced meat broth, and begin melting the curry block over a low flame.
*To be clear, curry packaging is 2 foil-covered plastic trays. 
We use half of 1 foil-covered tray now, and the other half to finish. 
Keep the remaining unused tray in the fridge for next time.

Add 1 tablespoon S&B curry powder, and 1-2 tablespoons of Cholula or Tapatio hot sauce, or 1 teaspoon minced chilies, and continue stirring to blend well.
*Add more or less hot sauce or minced chilies to taste.

Cover and simmer the beef cubes in the curry sauce at the lowest setting for 10-15 minutes, keep stirring to blend the spiced meat broth with the melting curry block pieces.

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Add the curry sauce and beef cubes to the veggies stirring well to blend, bring to a low boil, cover and reduce flame to its lowest setting. If the flame is too high you may have burning at the bottom of the pan, so keep it at its lowest, and stir often enough to ensure it is not burning.

Simmer at the lowest setting for 1 hour. Don't forget to stir once in awhile.
(and look to make sure the flame didn't go out!)

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Potatoes and Curry Sauce part two
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Again, carefully chop the remaining half-tray of curry block into smaller pieces, and add to the curry/veggies mixture, stir occasionally to blend. This will intensify the curry flavor at the finish, and will thicken the sauce as well. By now the curry is ready to eat, and the beef should be perfectly tender, so it is up to you how much longer you want to take cooking the potatoes (*see below). I can't place enough stress on the importance of vigilance when cooking the potatoes, since different varieties may have different cooking times.
The potatoes will make or break the end result.

Drain the potatoes and add them to the pot, bring back to a low boil, cover and reduce flame to its lowest setting for approx 1/2 hour, or until potatoes are cooked to desired tenderness. Some potato varieties such as "Yukon Gold" cook more quickly, so check the potatoes frequently as cooking times may vary. DON'T OVERCOOK!

*Tip: We want to cook (and flavor) the potatoes, but we don't want to burn the curry, so once the curry is back to a low boil, lower the flame to its lowest setting. It takes about a 1/2 hour to cook the potatoes with the flame at its lowest setting, and since we also don't want the potatoes to become too mushy, the best case scenario is to allow ample time to simply turn off the flame when the potatoes are half-cooked, and then let them continue to cook at that temperature and soak up the curry for another half hour or so with no further heat. This works out to about an extra 15 minutes, but the flavor it adds as the potatoes soak is worth the wait. We want the potatoes to be tender, but not falling apart.

Serve alongside of white rice, over pasta, or eat as a stew.
Home made garlic bread goes with the curry nicely.

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Note: The above recipe can also be the basis for Chicken curry (boneless thighs work best) or Pork curry (boneless pork shoulder or center cut pork chops).

For my tastes, and a lighter-colored appearance, I use Chicken broth (reduced sodium) for both Chicken and Pork curry. However, if I had leftover beef broth, I would not hesitate to use it for chicken or pork. Also, when making pork curry I like to add 2 tablespoons each of brown sugar and soy sauce and skip the tablespoon of curry powder.

Again, always add hot sauce or minced chilies to taste. If you are sure you like it spicy, you can always try the spicier versions of S&B curry block. My default curry block is the medium hot.

These curries always get better overnight in the fridge, as the meat tends to marinate and tenderize even more, so the leftovers are seldom wasted. In fact, you may find that making the curry the day before you plan to serve it will enhance the flavor.

If you want to go this route, add the potatoes only when you have removed the pan from the heat, they will become partially cooked and begin an overnight marination.

When ready to prepare the refrigerated curry, first skim off any fat on the cooled surface and then reheat the (fully cooked) curry. Allow curry to simmer for 20 minutes or so, and keep checking the potatoes per the recipe, and cook only till the potatoes are tender. Once they are cooked, it is ready to serve, and the potatoes should have soaked up a nice curry flavor overnight.

Potato management also applies to saving some of your curry in the freezer, where you may want to make a double batch of curry, and then prior to adding the single batch amount of potatoes, remove half of the curry to be frozen (minus any potatoes). Then thaw and reheat the curry, and once it is at a low boil, add the potatoes and cook per the recipe remembering to include some soak time as the potatoes finish cooking without a flame. You could of course par-boil the potatoes ahead of reheating the curry, but the potatoes will be better flavored by cooking in the curry.

It goes without saying that everyone's tastes differ, so be sure to experiment, but remember to make notes on what you like/dislike and anything you changed so that you can repeat and/or enhance a great batch of curry next time.

You may want more or less garlic, ginger, turmeric, lemon grass, or galangal, use more carrots which tends to make it sweeter, use different/more mushrooms, use different/more onions or shallots, soy sauce, etc,...above all experiment and then have fun owning it!

There are many possible refinements I can think of:
One thought was to take a handful of the smaller garlic cloves which are found in every head and perhaps peel them and cut them in half, and simmer them separately in some of the curry sauce. My thought was that they would soften into globs of surprise deliciousness which could be equally distributed to the servings as a garnish.

Likewise I would like to try some green peppercorns, perhaps simmering them along with the garlic cloves, also as a garnish which could be strained and divided into the servings in order to ensure that each serving would have equal amounts. Of course the curry sauce they were cooked in would only serve to enhance the overall flavor as a last minute topping added along with the peppercorns and garlic cloves. Perhaps add some cream or milk chocolate to give it a lighter color and then swirl some on top for presentation like the cream in a cup of Latte.

While living in a small village in Thailand, I also had some very good curries which had chunks of pumpkin, so that will be on my to do list in the future as well after a little research. In the meantime, Zucchini and Mexican squash have been working nicely, so if you like, try adding about a cup of your favorite squash.

There are also many other possibilities such as chili peppers, bell peppers, sriracha sauce instead of Mexican hot sauces, the idea being to try to come up with variations of the recipe which would help to make your Chicken, Beef, and Pork curries taste differently from one another. Adding more sweet, more spice, etc.

Another variation I have enjoyed elsewhere was cubes of tofu, which also tend to soak-up the curry flavor. However there is a particular firm tofu which works best and I am uncertain which one it is....I think it is the fried tofu. It tastes somewhat like fried egg whites. LOVED IT with curry!

At any rate, this is the basic formula from which I believe anyone will be successful on the first try. Have Fun and don't overcook the potatoes!!