Most often cooked with
Garlic
Onion
Spring onion
Sugar
Coriander
Soy sauce
Turmeric
Garam masalaRecipes with ginger
Beef Chow Mein
Beef coated in cornflour and seared in batches in a pan hot enough to smoke, with the sauce going in only at the very end.
Chana Masala
Chickpeas simmered in a dark, sour tomato and onion masala, finished with amchur so the sourness sits behind the spice rather than on top of it.
Chicken Congee
Rice simmered in eight times its weight of stock until the grains collapse, into a savoury porridge finished in the bowl.
Chicken Tikka Masala
Yogurt-marinated chicken charred hard under a grill, then finished in a spiced tomato and cream sauce that only works if the char goes in with it.
Curry Goat
Goat shoulder burned into curry powder and then cooked for two hours, until the meat gives and the sauce is thick enough to coat rice.
Egg Curry
Hard-boiled eggs, scored and browned in spice, simmered in an onion and tomato masala.
Egg Fried Rice
Yesterday's rice broken up cold and fried hard in a wide pan, so the grains stay separate and toast instead of steaming to paste.
Goan Fish Curry
White fish poached in a coconut and tamarind sauce ground from whole spices, sour and hot in equal measure and cooked in under half an hour.
Hot and Sour Soup
A brothy Sichuan-style soup thickened with a cornflour slurry and finished with vinegar and beaten egg off the heat, so both stay sharp.
Jerk Chicken
Chicken marinated overnight in scotch bonnet, allspice and thyme, then cooked slowly over smoke until the skin is lacquered almost black.
Kung Pao Chicken
Diced chicken stir-fried fast with dried chillies and peanuts in a sauce that is sour, sweet and salty in that order.
Lamb Rogan Josh
Lamb shoulder browned hard then cooked for two hours in yogurt and Kashmiri chilli, until the sauce is red, glossy and clinging rather than soupy.
Malai Kofta
Potato and paneer dumplings fried until crisp, sitting in a mild cashew and tomato sauce enriched with cream.
Mapo Tofu
Silken tofu in a fierce red sauce of fermented bean paste and Sichuan pepper, with just enough pork to season it.
Pho Bo
Charring the onion and ginger before they go near water is what makes the broth smell like pho rather than beef soup. Everything else is patience.
Pork Vindaloo
Pork marinated in vinegar, garlic and dried chillies, then cooked slowly until sharp, dark and much more sour than hot.
Pryaniki
Spiced honey biscuits with a soft crumb and a thin white sugar glaze that dries to a matt shell as they cool.
Red-Braised Pork Belly
Pork belly caramelised in sugar and braised in soy and wine until the fat turns to jelly and the sauce to lacquer.
Saag Paneer
Spinach cooked down to a dark, silky base with ginger and green chilli, with cubes of fried paneer folded through at the end.
Shoyu Ramen with Chashu Pork
A soy-based broth that tastes long-cooked because it is. The pork rolls the night before, which is most of the work and none of the effort.
Slow-Cooked Black Dal
Whole urad soaked overnight and simmered for hours until it turns black and glossy, then finished with butter and a little cream.
Steamed Sea Bass with Ginger and Spring Onion
A whole fish steamed plain, dressed with soy, and finished by pouring smoking oil over raw ginger and spring onion.