Madras BIR Recipe

Another fairly hot dish, Madras is named after the city of Madras which is now known as Chennai which is the capital of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state.

Madras is fairly heavy on the chilli powder which helps to colour the curry along with Turmeric. A very tasty, saucy curry and one of my favourites!

I’ll show you here how to make a real tasty Madras right at home with my super easy to follow recipe. As always, make life easy for yourself and get all your prep done in advance!

Curry dish with chicken Madras BIR curry

Madras BIR Recipe Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 10cm Cassia Bark
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 1/4 Medium Onion - Grated
  • 1 tbsp Garlic and Ginger Paste
  • 1 1/2 tsp Chilli Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 tsp Kasuri Methi (Fenugreek Leaves)
  • 1 1/2 tsp Curry Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1 tsp Sugar
  • 2 tbsp Tomato Puree
  • 2 tsp Lemon Juice
  • 1 tbsp Fresh Coriander - Finely Chopped
  • 250mL Base Gravy
  • 2-3 Splashes of Worcestershire Sauce (Optional)
  • Your choice of Pre-Cooked Meat or Vegetables

Method

Make sure to have all your prep done. Measure out and place the Chill Powder, Turmeric, Kasuri Methi, Curry Powder, Salt and Sugar together in a small pot as these will be added at the same time. 

Have all the other ingredients measured out and ready to add.

Heat up the Base gravy and have this next to your frying pan. Add the oil to your frying pan and on a medium heat fry the Cassia Bark, Cumin Seeds along with the Garlic and Ginger Paste for one minute stirring frequently.

Add the grated onion and fry stirring occasionally until the onion softens. Add the Chilli Powder, Turmeric, Curry Powder, Kasuri Methi, Salt and Sugar and fry for 2 minutes stirring frequently to avoid burning the spices. You might need to add a splash of base gravy to prevent them from burning.

 

Turn onto a high heat. Add the Tomato puree, Worcestershire Sauce (if using) and Lemon Juice. Mix well and fry for 1 minute before adding 1/4 of the base gravy. Stir in the base gravy and then stop stirring. Allow the sauce to become dry around the edges and wait for little craters to form. Then stir and add another 1/4 of the base gravy. Repeat this process to build up the sauce leaving it until you think it’s about to burn before stirring again. Make sure to scrape the sauce from the edges and mix it back in, this is full of flavour!

Add your choice of pre-cook meat or vegetables and heat through. Add the base gravy and allow to cook as before until your desired consistency is achieved.

Add the chopped Coriander and stir through. Then serve and garnish with a little more chopped Coriander.