Yes, it's not very artisan but we need a convenient means to make a curry.
So, any particularly good brands or flavours to try?
[url= http://www.thespicetailor.co.uk/Punjabi-Tomato-Curry ]Spice Tailor[/url] ok not from a jar but pretty easy nonetheless
Pataks Balti or madras paste is my go to.
I like the Aldi ones. They come with a sachet of ground spices you add. I go a bit off piste and tend to marinate the meat in the spices before cooking them in the sauce and they always turn out nice for a convenient curry out of a jar.
Pataks, usually Madras.
I like a lot of the Indi curry stuff from home bargains
Patak’s pastes are good but not quite ‘out of the jar’ as they require tomatoes, garlic, ginger, cream etc.
I used to like the Lloyd Grossman ones but they have gone downhill in the last few years.
But I have given up on all jars now as I much prefer cooking from scratch.
I like the Aldi curry sauces with separate spices too. Might try Wobbliscott suggestion of marinading in the spices first.
Patak’s pastes are good but not quite ‘out of the jar’ as they require tomatoes, garlic, ginger, cream etc.
So pretty much a wet spice?
Yup I make my own better results and not that much harder.
My area of expertise! Love a curry out of a jar! Best are -
1. Lidl Madras (one with the spice sachet in the lid)
2. Loyd Grossman Balti
Grossman ones are actually pretty healthy, especially compared to stuff like Sharwoods.
The Aagrah jars blow every other jar based curry out of the water imo. Usually cook from scratch but the Aagrah ones come very close, especially the hydrabadi.
Some of the Aagrah ones I rate, but £2.50 a jar. I think the Hydrabadi one is the one I only tried once and wasn't keen, but I think you add coconut milk or something, which I didn't.
Usually buy the Aldi ones @95p and add a sprinkle of dried chillis to up the heat, they're reasonably decent for the price.
M&S used to do a nice Jalfrezzi paste add peppers, onions and meat and you had a lovely Jalfrezzi, but for some reason they stopped doing it and now only do tikka masala or korma...
Spice tailor are the best I've tried. Pataks now do similar things but they all taste the same, like the pastes do.
the proper thai pastes from Asian food shops are usually very good. if not I'd choose a curry powder and mix with tomatoes or whatever. as long as its fresh a lot of curry powders are decent, or pataks madras as said, but they ain't cheap
See if you can find Holy Cow. I love to cook a curry from scratch but for evenings when you don’t need the hassle, they’re awesome. I know Ocado sell them but haven’t seen them in a supermarket.
Pataks Rogan Josh paste.
It has a bit more depth than the others, which do all taste a bit similar - it's true.
These Tiger Tiger ones are pretty good. I usually add a little something extra from the cupboards to jazz it up a bit but on the whole I find them nicer than the classic jars.
[url= https://groceries.asda.com/product/curry-cooking-sauces/tiger-tiger-punjabi-style-rich-fragrant-butter-chicken-cooking-sacue/1000007949513 ]Tiger Tiger Curry Sachets[/url]
[i]the others, which do all taste a bit similar[/i]
No they don't. Must be your palette.
Well, they all taste of curry, I suppose.
So pretty much a wet spice?
Yup - essentially just the base.
One 'out of the box' mixes I do still really like is [url= http://www.currytonight.co.uk/order.php ]Mrs Shah [/url]- again it is just a base and you need to add more to it so not strictly a jar sauce, but the Extra hot ones are spot on (although by the time I have finished they are more just 'hot' as I add lots of extra ingredients like chick peas, potatoes, extra tomatoes etc.
I like these ones from [url= https://www.thetinytakeaway.com/ ]Tiny Takeaway[/url]
Very simple ingredients and really nice tasting. I make them in bulk in the slow cooker and then freeze them in portions.
Rafi's spice box mixes seem way better than any jar I've ever tried. I usually pick up a few when in Harrogate and freeze until needed. (they do mail order but the postage is a bit steep for small orders).
no jars at all, always have a 'taste' due to the boiling they undergo... buy chimans spice packets from here and trust me its the closest you will get to a restaurant curry (more so if you use ghee).
https://www.freshessential.co.uk/product-category/chimans-spice-blends/
cheap too, one packet split in half makes two very generous meals.
Rafi's spice box mixes
Again, they are only a base (all the ones I have used need tomatoes/coconut milk etc). But UI agree they are very good.
[url= https://www.currysauce.com/home-delivery/346/18/Products ]The Curry Sauce Company[/url] are about the best I've found, you can find them in some shops, deli's etc. or order online if not.