Indian Base Gravy Recipe

Indian base gravy is used in all Indian restaurants and takeaways. You can think of it as a Indian stock which allows the restaurants to produce the vast amount of different curries in such a quick time frame. They will prepare large quantities of base gravy in advance and you can do the same at home, well maybe not on such a large scale but you can certainly prepare a batch and freeze it in portions ready to defrost and use each time you fancy a curry!

I am going to share with you here my simple Indian base gravy recipe which I use to produce some insanely tasty food! This recipe will provide you with enough base gravy for around 15 portions depending on the curry and how saucy you like them…

A pan of Indian Base Gravy Recipe

Indian Base Gravy Recipe Ingredients

  • 150ml Vegetable Oil
  • 1kg Brown Onions - roughly chopped
  • 90g Carrot - roughly chopped
  • 1 Green Pepper - roughly chopped
  • 80g Potato - roughly chopped
  • 1 1/2 tbsp of Garlic Paste or Crushed Garlic
  • 1 tbsp of Grated Ginger
  • 1 tbsp Curry Powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp Ground Coriander
  • 1 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin
  • 1 tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 tsp Garam Masala
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 120g Tomato Puree
  • 80mL Coconut Milk or 40g Coconut block
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2.5 Litres of Water

Method

At the oil to a large pan (a stock pot is ideal for this) and warm to a medium heat. Add the onions, carrot, pepper and potato along with the garlic and ginger. Stirring frequently allow to cook for around 5 minutes. Put a lid on the pan and turn down to a very low heat. Allow to cook (stirring occasionally) until the onions have fully softened. This may take up to an hour.

Once the onions have softened it’s time to turn back up to a medium heat and then add the curry powder, coriander, cumin, turmeric, and garam masala. Stir continuously and cook for 2 minutes (it should start to smell amazing right now!) Add in the tomato puree, sugar, coconut milk/block and water. Give it a good mix then cover and simmer for an hour giving it a stir every now and then.

Now turn the heat off and allow it to cool down before blending the base gravy. You want it to be smooth and the consistency of a thin soup, if it’s too thick  add a bit more more water mixing it in until its the right consistency.

Now you have made some amazing Indian base gravy you can portion it up into 250mL portions and keep in the freezer until you need them. Freezer bags are good for this!