Thanks for the update, they have changed the recipe so I think I’ll probably try to make it again.

Thanks again,

Adele

I’ve been trying to replicate the recipe for this curry sauce for years. I lived in Middleton nr. Manchester where Lily Kwok (and later her daughter Mabel) had her Chinese Take-Away selling a thick gloopy almost green curry sauce. My family and I have consumed gallons of the stuff.

I was amazed to find the recipe published after Lily is recorded on the UKTV Food program saying that the recipe would remain a family secret.

Well, I’ve made this recipe 3 times and it turns out quite a nice sauce but it doesn’t come near the original. So I think the secret is safe or maybe this recipe is for a different sauce to that sold at the take-away.

Your recipe is missing 2.5tsp curry powder addded with the other spices and 500ml of stock (chicken or vegetable) which is added at the end. Then the sauce is simmered for an hour allowing it to reduce and thicken.

The full recipe is on the UKTV Food website, try this link…
http://uktv.co.uk/food/recipe/aid/580588

The amount of flour has got me thinking. The recipe says 2.5tsp of plain plus 2.5tsp of self-raising. I might try doubling the amount next time I make the sauce to get the extra thickness.

Incidentally, I added 1 star anise and 1 bay leaf with the stock. I remember these extra ingredients occasionally appearing in the shop bought sauce.

oh well! this is the recipe that I got from the site as soon as it was on tv.

Lily Kwok’s Curry
Servings: 2
• Level of difficulty: Easy
• Preparation Time: 20 minutes
• Cooking Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
For the sauce
• 6 tbsp vegetable oil or ghee, (clarified butter)
• 3 Onions, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 4 cm piece ginger root, peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 mild fleshy red chillies, seeds removed and chopped
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 5 tbsp plain flour
• 5 tbsp self-raising flour
• 125ml water
For the chicken
• 3-4 tbsp cornflour
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp fresh peas
Method
1. Heat the oil in a heavy-based pan and cook the chopped onion for a few minutes over a high heat. Add the ginger, garlic and red chilli. Stir for 30 seconds then reduce the heat to very low. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring from time to time, making sure nothing browns or burns.
2. Add the turmeric, cumin and coriander and cook very gently for a further 5 minutes. Don’t burn the spices or the sauce will taste acrid; sprinkle on a few drops of water if you’re worried. Remove from the heat and cool a little.

3. Put the water in a food processor or blender and add the contents of the pan. Whiz until very smooth. Add the plain and self-raising flours and blend again.

4. Put the puréed mixture back into the pan and cook for 20-30 minutes (the longer the better) over a very low heat, stirring occasionally. You can add a little hot water if it starts to catch on the pan, but the idea is to gently “fry” the sauce so that it darkens in colour to an orangey brown. The final texture should be something like thick HP sauce.

5. For the chicken: season the cornflour with salt and pepper. Toss the chicken strips in the cornflour to coat.

6. Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the chicken for a few minutes until it turns white. Add the onions and peas and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the curry sauce and heat until piping hot.

I used the recipe from the UKTV Food site as it was published. If it is indeed “missing” some ingredients I would really appreciate it if you get the corrected recipe if you would be so kind as to pass it on to me.

Thanks

I have also seen this receipe posted on the UKTV Food website but they had put the wrong amounts of ingredients. Did you copy the receipe from there or directly from Helen?

Thanks