Thirty Litre Barrels are too heavy for Domestic Fridges. A Cooperative Colleague permitted access to an Industrial Fridge and so not One Barrel but Two were Perfectly Chilled for this afternoon’s gathering. Jonathan had driven the Barrels from Source, Hector’s House was the Venue. Sixteen Guests to demolish the Bier. Seventeen Mouths all needing fed. One did not show. And no Olive either.
Pyraser Landbier at 5.4% (Pyras, Bayern) is a now regular treat. Kitzmann Bergkirchweihbier (Erlangen, Bayern) at 5.9% was unknown to most. You won’t like it – I told the Gathering, maybe some believed me. It also happened to be the day after Dr. Stan’s Birthday. Cue a perfect afternoon.
How to Feed 17
Given that the Curry has to be ready in advance and reheated, preparation is everything.
Forget Chicken, it turns to Pulp. Forget Lamb/Mutton, it tends towards Pulp. Mince is the easiest to cook and maintains its integrity. That Halal Lamb Mince was on special offer at KRK helped keep the price down, Five Kilos please.
The cooking began on Thursday evening. The Masala was created with great patience according to the Standard Recipe. Three bags of Frozen Chopped Onions, Five Tins of Tomatoes.
Half of the Mince was then cooked in the Masala, the remainder in Oil and copious freshly ground Garam Masala. An entire Bag of Frozen Methi was absorbed. I managed to keep the quantity of Oil down to 750ml of Vegetable Oil. Keema Curry has to be served Dry.
The next challenge was to ensure the Curry was edible, no point making a Vindaloo strength Curry that only Four of us could eat. There had to be a Kick and there had to be Flavour. This is where Tamarind Resin and Pickled Karela come into their own. And Salt.
Last night Cold Curry was sampled, by today all the Tamarind and Karela was in the Curry, more Methi and more Salt. A Bag of Defrosted Peas. Good to go. An entire hand of Freshly Chopped Coriander was added this morning, and more Methi!.
Normally I Microwave Rice in batches for Three People. Today I risked using a Pot, well Two Pots. What does Rice for Seventeen look like? Better to have too much than too little. The Company were invited to bring Plastic Containers for a possible Takeaway. Of Curry, not Bier.
To accommodate the Late Arriver, we ate at 18.00. By then we were HUNGRY.
Many had Seconds, always a good sign. It is polite to praise the Host’s Efforts.
Some memorable quotes:
Unattributed – It was nice of Alan to leave us some.
John – Absolutely excellent Curry, thank you.
Craig – Fab -f- tastic. I went back for more and I don’t…
The Duke of Hamilton – Five, plus. And afterwords – Your Keema Curry was Splendiferous.
Stewart – On the High End of the Mediocre Scale.
Steve – Very, very good. I’ve had better Curry here. More-ish.
Neil – A Plate of Cardamom, lovely Curry, very good.
Will – It was alright.
Howard – Stunning, there is no room for improvement. A depth of Flavour. A Keema Curry to be savoured.
The Faither – A bit of strength on the Richter Scale before Tom O grinds it down.
Mags, Tracey and The Duke had Takeaways.
The Aftermath
Marg returned from Hockey, with a Cake.
When was this?
Hector replies:
Star Date -308587.3267059867
Superb curry, excellent beer, great company. A grand day.
Hector replies:
but apart from that…