It was a number of years into our relationship before I got Brett to try Indian. I don't know how it happened - maybe it was still so early in the relationship that he was less likely to say "I don't like that" without actually trying it? Whatever the case, we found he really likes Indian food. It's also interesting that Brett's more experimental with the Indian food he'll eat than the Chinese. If we order Chinese, he'll stick with chicken with broccoli, and maybe get something like a chicken noodle soup with it, or will eat General Tso's chicken if I get it. If we go to a Chinese buffet he'll be a little more adventuresome.
But when it comes to Indian, he's WAY more open minded. Maybe it's the flavors, or maybe it's that most Indian tends to come with a bit more kick (which he likes!). Whatever the case, Indian's actually something I find Brett's more likely to try than many other folks we know!
So recently we were talking about how we hadn't had Indian in awhile, and we'd picked up some spice mixes from Penzey's back in January PLUS some Indian jarred sauces as well. So Brett decided to get creative for our dinner one night! Looks pretty good, hunh?
The more yellowy-sauced dish on the right was a jar of Chicken Butter Sauce, only Brett made it with potatoes and chicken peas. And on the left is Chicken Rogan Josh (normally made with lamb or beef), which he made using Penzey's spice mix. Both turned out pretty good! I definitely like the rogan josh way more than the jarred butter sauce.... The rogan josh called for 2-4 T of the seasoning mix, and Brett went with 3 T - good, but boy did it have some kick!
Eating Indian food also gives Brett a chance to eat rice the way HE prefers it - loose and fluffy. I'm more of a Korean sticky-rice kinda guy, and since I do most of the cooking around here, that's usually the type I make.
And on a side note, thanks to Tina at work I just picked up Jamie Oliver's latest book, Jamie's Food Revolution
, which has an entire section on curries, including how to make your own curry pastes. Boy do they look GOOOOOD!! We're definitely not ones to shy away from grinding/mixing our own spices around here, so we may never have to buy our own jarred sauces or pre-mixed seasonings again!Between the remaining spices and jarred sauces in the pantry, plus the new cook book, I've a feeling we'll be having more Indian in the near future. And hey, maybe Brett'll play chef again real soon!
2 comments:
So, how authentic were the sauces? I usually find they're too bland and I have to add a ton of seasonings to get them where we like them.
Though, we usually go out for Indian food, since there are a billion places around here for it.
Thanks to Bubba, I became a fan of Indian when we first started dating and I didn't want to be *that girl* who got all squirrely with new foods.
I found that Indian has been one of the easiest new cuisines to love because a lot of Indian places are vegetarian - which I find less intimidating.
Even though the dosas can be bigger than a sleeping bag.
Oh trust me, the Rogan Josh had TONS of flavor to it!! It was actually packing a bit of heat as well. When you go out for Indian do you get asked how hot you want your dish - mild, medium, hot, or Indian hot? I'd say the Rogan Josh was between medium and hot (and I think Indian-heat runs a bit hotter than Mexican-heat per each of the standard labels).
The butter sauce....eh, maybe it wasn't flavorful enough? Maybe that's why I didn't care for it as much? It was just kinda bland.
Do you guys have Penzey's out there? Or do you order from them online? If so, I'd definitely suggest checking out their seasoning mixes if you want to try making your Indian at home...
And it's good that you're not "that girl" - because NO ONE likes "that girl"!
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