Great curry gravy is an essential part of preparing curries and the best curry houses!

Popular curry houses prepare upwards of one hundred plus curries every night. The posh restaurants will have a crew of chefs creating each dish individually. Smaller restaurants use curry gravy such as the this here and then add this spice or that selection of herbs to the curry gravy to create different dishes.

Restaurant style madras, spicy vindaloo and extra spicy phall curries are all made with a similar curry gravy but with different amounts of chilli powder.

Add a little coconut milk to the curry gravy along with a little to no chilli powder and you will have a restaurant style korma.

In the restaurant, the chefs make a large pot of curry gravy every night. Then they simply add the type of meat requested along with a ladle full of gravy and the required additional spices and the meal is ready to serve.

This recipe is for about 12 different dishes. The gravy freezes very well so that you can easily make excellent tasting curries at a last minutes notice.

I like to work from whole roasted spices which I then grind down to the required amounts of powdered spices. You can purchase good quality ready made powdered spices and it will still taste great.

Curry gravy was used to make this rabbit vindaloo!

Curry Gravy Masala Mix

6 Tablespoons ground coriander
3 Tablespoons ground cumin
2 Tablespoons ground fenugreek
3 Tablespoons graham flour (This is chickpea flour available in large supermarkets and Indian shops)
4 Tablespoons garlic powder
2 Tablespoons smoked Spanish Paprika
2 Tablespoons garam masala
1 Tablespoon ground ginger
1 Tablespoon mild chilli powder
2 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and add just enough water to make into a think paste.

For the Gravy

5 Tablespoons ghee or clarified butter
15 cloves smashed and then finely chopped garlic
1 fat finger sized piece of ginger, grated with the skin on
5 red onion finely chopped
550 ml water

Melt the ghee in a heavy pot. Add the chopped onions and fry over medium heat until the onions are transparent – slightly browned and caramelised. Add the smashed and chopped garlic and fry for a further five minutes. Be sure not to brown the garlic.

Add the water and simmer for a further five minutes. Allow to cool slightly and blend to a smooth gravy in a blender or with a handheld blender.

Now have fun! Add about one ladle per person along with the meat of your choice. You might like to throw in a tin of chopped tomatoes and/or a few tablespoons of yogurt. You could add four tablespoons of chilli powder for a powerfully hot phall. Just ad one or two tablespoons for a mild madres curry.

A bit of lime juice and finely chopped coriander will always be appreciated.
I would love to hear how you use this gravy. Let me know if you come up with an amazing combination. I always like to hear about new ways to use the gravy. It is a one sauce does all

curry gravy

that you will like to keep on hand.