Beef vs chicken curry

corblimey

Apart from the meat involved obviously, is there any fundamental difference between making a beef curry and making a chicken curry?

The number of beef dishes I make regularly has fallen off dramatically and I don't want to get bored with chicken, so I need to branch out. I've got a fairly basic chicken curry recipe I make all the time that doesn't appear to have anything too chicken-centric in it, spices, curry powder, coconut milk, onions, garlic, allspice, the usual suspects I believe. I've looked up beef curry recipes online, but I know this recipe and I like it, so if I just use some sliced steak instead of sliced chicken, am I set?

Lovely Bloke

you need to make sure the piece of beef you get is suitable for the kind of curry you are making - this is not a concern with chicken really. You can fry chicken off in a few minutes for a quick curry, or you can stick chicken in the oven for an hour and a half in sauce. It will be fine both ways.

For beef, if you are trying to make a quick curry you need a cut of meat that can be cooked quickly and be tender. For a longer cooking time, you need a different cut, something that can withstand being, essentially, stewed.

huskerdu

Yes, it wont matter.

The term curry means everything and nothing anyway. In the western world, it is a generic term for a stew type meal which is spicy.

THere are thousands of recipes worldwide that are called curry so the terms beef curry and chicken curry in themselves dont mean anything really.

If you have a recipe for chicken curry and want to change the meat, go ahead.

The only issue is that if it is a recipe that involves long slow cooking, use a beef suitable for the length of cooking.

efc67

corblimey wrote: »

Apart from the meat involved obviously, is there any fundamental difference between making a beef curry and making a chicken curry?

The number of beef dishes I make regularly has fallen off dramatically and I don't want to get bored with chicken, so I need to branch out. I've got a fairly basic chicken curry recipe I make all the time that doesn't appear to have anything too chicken-centric in it, spices, curry powder, coconut milk, onions, garlic, allspice, the usual suspects I believe. I've looked up beef curry recipes online, but I know this recipe and I like it, so if I just use some sliced steak instead of sliced chicken, am I set?

I don't know if you use chicken stock in the curry you are making now, if so, i would change it to beef stock, also the cut of meat is really important (as someone has already mentioned), when i make a beef curry, i use fillet steak, but it can workout fairly pricey

The Hill Billy

Try using different veg. In my Indian-type curries I've started using lots of pulses, courgette & cauliflower recently which, for me has brought a new dimension to them.

Likewise with SE Asian-style curries by adding very al dente veg such as string beans & shredded cabbage.

Don't forget that lamb, pork, fish & shellfish also go well in all manner of curries.

corblimey

Thanks all, I hadn't considered the length of time I cook my curries for, I usually just cook to a certain consistency and assume my chicken is good, I'll have to think about the cut of meat carefully. Good tip on the veg too, although I can't stand cauliflower