6 August 2009

Rama's look/taste alike?

| jadie360
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I have recently moved from Canberra to the coast and loving it. EXCEPT, I am not getting my weekly fix of Rama’s, especially the Chicken Korma and Beef Madras.

Does anyone have or know where I can find receipes that will re-create these for me so my life will be perfect?

I have tried several generic ones but nothing comes close to the Rama’s taste.

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Jadie,

+1 what MsCheeky said.

IMO to replicate any Rama’s meal, Google the desired recipe and triple the ghee. Make sure you use plenty of coconut cream for the gravy (the highest fat content you can find). Ignore any amount of hot spice mentioned in the recipe and add chilli powder to your liking (no other hot spice is necessary). Do not add any vegetables if at all possible – Indians live mostly on meat.

In all seriousness, tastiness comes from freshly grinding your own spices in a mortar and pestle if you can get them whole. Curry blends lose their flavour over time and you often don’t know what’s in them. If you can’t buy fresh curry leaves, you may have to grow a curry tree.

Good luck; you are going through exactly what I went through when I moved from Sydney.

Muttsybignuts11:28 am 07 Aug 09

Best. Indian. Ever.
Minnie and her team rock!

Woody Mann-Caruso6:50 pm 06 Aug 09

Sorry – the book is actually called ‘Favourite Restaurant Curries‘, not Recipes.

Woody Mann-Caruso6:23 pm 06 Aug 09

See if you can get hold of Pat Chapman’s Curry Club Favourite Restaurant Recipes – you can pick it up for a pound from Amazon.uk. The guy visited pretty much every restaurant on Manchester’s ‘Curry Mile’ and found that not only do they all cook curry in exactly the same way, pretty much every restaurant curry is the same dish, with variations in spicing occurring in a hot pan at the last minute.

According to the book, the secrets to Indian restaurant curry are:

– massive quantities of onion, garlic and ginger puree. The stuff simmers in enormous pots like apple sauce, and forms the thick base of almost all curries;
– cheap cuts of meat (eg shoulder), simmered for hours in akhni – a very weak stock; and
– lots of ghee.

The dish can be ready within a couple of minutes of you ordering, because all the hard yakka was done hours earlier. The chef throws a pan on very high heat. In goes a generous ladle of onion/garlic/ginger puree and a little akhni stock, followed by whatever spices are called for (usually kept premixed in tubs – so for a ‘Madras’, throw in a couple of spoons of Madras powder or paste). Another minute, in goes the meat that has been simmering all day, boned, diced and returned to the akhni stock. Add the finishing touches eg cream, coconut milk, tomato paste, then a healthy dollop ghee. Finished.

Pelican Lini5:24 pm 06 Aug 09

I’ve always spread a Rama’s takeaway meal over two days in the belief it was even tastier the next day.
So extra salt and oil, eh?
I still think there’s more going on to produce such a unique and delicious taste.
Hi Minny, if you get to see this thread. Love your work.

Part of the secret to Ramas food, like much restaurant food, as they use more oil and salt than you generally would at home. If you’ve ever put your Ramas leftovers in the fridge overnight and seen the level of fat on top the next day, you’ll know what I mean.

As for making food that tastes like Ramas, don’t forget that there is Fijian influence to the food – it is fijian indian. Now, I think google is your friend.

Pelican Lini4:41 pm 06 Aug 09

You could also get your Canberra friends to bring supplies from Rama’s when they visit you.

Actually a bit of googling has come up trumps. The one I (and when I say I, I mean the person that cooks my food) uses is “A Little Taste of India” http://www.murdochbooks.com.au/tasteindia.htm and it has a saffron spine, not the whole cover.

YouWhat said :

We know Minny (the owner/operator of Rama’s) – no way she’d give out her recipes (!) but I’ll see if she knows of any place down your way that she might recommend; maybe that would be an acceptable substitute!

Thanks YouWhat, that would be great. You could tell her we are the Chicken Korma and Beef Madras people and that our boys have all driven for her – she’ll know who we are 🙂

A good cookbook is the best I can do- everyone has difference definitions of “good” and I can’t recall the name of the one on my kitchen bench except to say that it has a saffron cover and loads of helpful photos.

jadie360 said :

I’m sorry if I have offended anyone – that wasn’t my intention. It just seemed that no one had actually addressed my specific question.

Quick tip: RiotACT threads, like all internet forums, have a life and mind of their own. Complain or try to dictate content will get you a STFU very quickly and very little in the way of help. The very first poster gave you a constructive tip. Take from the thread what is useful and be thankful. I think the Rioters have been very easy on you.

Jadie 360
“I’m sorry if I have offended anyone – that wasn’t my intention. It just seemed that no one had actually addressed my specific question”

I thought post 1,5 & 9 were helpful?

I love ramas also, good luck finding a similar restaurant.

Friska said :

Isnt there a Rama’s in Woden or somewhere around there?

Hank said :

Rama’s is in Pearce, it’s so good!

How do these help? I know Rama’s is in Pearce. I have been going there for years.

jessieduck said :

Lear how to cook your own- Indian is so easy once you understand the order of when things go in. Get yourself a good cook book and you’ll never look back.

That’s actually what I was asking. For help to find suitable recipes.

I’m sorry if I have offended anyone – that wasn’t my intention. It just seemed that no one had actually addressed my specific question.

We know Minny (the owner/operator of Rama’s) – no way she’d give out her recipes (!) but I’ll see if she knows of any place down your way that she might recommend; maybe that would be an acceptable substitute!

jadie360 said :

Did any of you actually read what I wrote? Yes Rama’s is in Pearce, but no I don’t live in Canberra anymore. I have moved to the coast.
I WANT to cook my own, and have tried, but haven’t found any recipes that replicate even closely that particular Rama’s taste. I am asking for advise on how to do so. That’s all – simple really.

I read there comments and think it seemed as they people did read what you wrote. I don’t get the issue.
I doubt people will really want to help you out if you have such attitude too.

Did any of you actually read what I wrote? Yes Rama’s is in Pearce, but no I don’t live in Canberra anymore. I have moved to the coast.
I WANT to cook my own, and have tried, but haven’t found any recipes that replicate even closely that particular Rama’s taste. I am asking for advise on how to do so. That’s all – simple really.

Pelican Lini3:06 pm 06 Aug 09

Mmmm Rama’s,
My extensive research in Melbourne and Sydney has failed to find one Indian restaurant anywhere near equal to this palace of Pearce and especially the dishes you mentioned as well as the Lamb Sagh, jadie360.
Why don’t you move back to Canberra?

Lear how to cook your own- Indian is so easy once you understand the order of when things go in. Get yourself a good cook book and you’ll never look back.

Rama’s is in Pearce, it’s so good!

I thought there was a Rama’s in Pearce?

Isnt there a Rama’s in Woden or somewhere around there?

Order some of the spice blends from here

http://www.mudgeerabaspices.com.au/

Make your own. We are Ramas devotees as well but these spice mixes come very close. They are at Floriade most years so can be tasted there. The butter chicken and south Indian vegetable curry are our favourites

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