Never used a blender, and my masala is always a smooth paste. It’s really simple
Put onions (finely chopped), garlic n ginger in pot
Add salt n oil n turn heat up to full for 5-10 mins leaving lid on (speeds up the process)
Remove lid, stir occasionally to stop the onions sticking. Once golden brown add tomato n give it a good stir, turn heat down to medium n let onions garlic n tomatoes wilt down. Add spices, turn heat up high n add half a glass of water. It will sizzle and all the ingredients will form a really nice paste
We don’t pre blend the onions. Let the onions soften in the oil…keep the heat on low/medium… and when you add the tomatoes and spices…continue to let it all cook on low heat…let the the tomatoes get tender…and with the above spoon (we call it a doyi) …mash the mixture of onions/tomatoes/spices…and you will see that it all blends/comes together to form a gravy/curry. And then you can add the sabzi…or meat…etc. You can water and yogurt…and ket it cook until the oil rises to the surfaces. Water is added sometimes…but no so often…making me wonder if maybe you should turn the heat down, add a bit more oil..or as unknownn said above use that kind of spoon…which is what we use.
No no most people in my family also dont use blender, my mother had skin problem on her hands so probably she used that way to avoid contact with onion less as we used to live in KSA where we did not have any maids and she was doing everything herself. So may be i grew up seeing this so i liked that method but i dont know why when i make it in conventional way the salan is always a good paste alhumdulillah but i like the blended one more, i hate cutting onions seriously.
CB try that pressure cooker method and you will not be disappointed insha’Allah
I never fried onion first.slight different from scherbatsky initially put onion and water with tomatoes and garlic paste, to get soft, once it done, add oil n start bhooning, everything get consistent. even the skin of tomato as well.
So many awesome tips and such clear explanation , this is why i love this place
I am going to try out this thinly slice method and the Pressure cooker method and report back in a day or two In Shaa Allah
Quick question: why does the taste of the salan differ when one uses blender to crush the onion v/s cutting it thin and letting it mesh up naturally ???
The cooking process i assume, like in qorma the onions are mashed after browning and qorma has obviously different taste than normal shorba. Same difference may be if u chop raw meat it becies qeema whereas if u do after tenderizing it, it has different texture
