I don't need specific recipes like what kind of meat or vegetables to use. I do need a basic recipe for making a good spicy curry sauce, and I'll add in whatever 'main' ingredients I want.

Large batches are preferable, like a whole pot's worth. I need something I can store for a while, then heat up and pour over rice for a quick meal.

*ObZ

I use a jarred vindaloo paste, Patak's. Fairly high quality and one jar lasts me quite a while. Just toss a tablespoon or so of that into the pan with your veg and shit, and a can of coconut milk. From there, taste and add whatever you think it needs. And you need to have a sweet factor in there, not just veg and meat. I looooveee mango in my curry, but don't add it till later if it's really ripe because it'll just mix right in, you want chunks. Apple also works well. When I have nothing else lying around I even use raisins.

And Jasmine rice is best, none of this minute rice shit.

Have you forgotten that I'm a yellow-blooded chinaman? Never had minit rice in my life.

*ObZ

I buy a box of spicy gold curry sauce mix from the asian store. The brand is like S&B? the rest of the box is in japanese.

It is quite a good sauce mix. I make a great chicken curry and vegetables over some calrose rice. It tastes way better than the supermarket curry mixes.

Damn it, now im hungry for some good curry.

http://www.curryhouse.co.uk/rsc/maindish.htm

making curry sauce from scratch is quite annoying, so you can go do indian, asian or middle eastern stores and there should be cans of curry paste

then just brown your meat in one pan, take it out. then in that pan, fry (actually, toast) the curry paste to realease flavours. now add stock or water. throw in your meat again, some vegetables, seasoning, and cover. then simmer ntil the meat is cooked.

meats to put in it:
chicken legs
beef cube
goat
blood jelly
fish and shrimp (works with green curry)

vegetables:
lentils (for vegetarians as a meat sub)
potatos
carrot
onion
chickpeas/garbanzo beans
parsnip
french beans (for green curries)

other:
lemon grass
chilli
various other spices
coconut cream

serve with:
rice
rice vermecelli
various breads

Perhaps this isn't true for most of the world, but coming from a British background where curry is almost as central to society as say...... using automatic weapons against harmless animals is, in the States... there's a whole load of curry "products" which can be easily purchased. Curry powder, turmeric, coriander, cloves, paprika, general spice, cumin, chillies (or flakes/powder) etc etc. It's not hard to knock up a sauce with such products.

Really, a curry can be remarkably simple. Onions and some sort of "bulk" will probably be key - think meat, potatoes, lentils etc. Making a good sauce is really just a matter of reducing down tomatoes, or other veggies, or whacking in a tin of "one we made earlier" stuff. Season + spice, more veggies, more flavour, bit o' yoghurt or coconut milk...?

A recipe can only take you so far. Definitely, it'll be helpful as a framework to work your "amounts" around, but don't worry about experimenting. It'll be hard for it to go "wrong" past a certain point!

Also; long-grain/Basmati rice FOR THE WIN. None of that short-grain sticky American rice shite.

tomatoes in curry?

....Not putting tomatoes in (South Asian style) curry...???

Whenever I make curry I always follow this recipe, except i'll substitute the potatoes with chicken, and add some carrots and bell peppers in the last minute. This lady has a lot of really good indian recipes on her youtube channel, i've made curry way better than the canned/jar stuff using this recipe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOLKaQeB6j0