"Thanks for such a great book - I'm delighted with all the recipes I've tried.  My question is about the mint sauce.  There seem to be huge differences in the different types of yoghurt that I try for the recipe, and it has a major affect on the end product.  I realise you can't recommend brands, but any assistance would be gratefully appreciated.  My regular restaurant has a very runny mint sauce.  I'd love to recreate it!"  Matt, Leicester.

Thanks for the question Matt.  As you rightly say, the flavour does vary lots because of the yoghurt.  And the brand of mint sauce too.  You're also right that we don't have a policy of recommending brands, but here are a few points to note.  Bear in mind that every restaurant is different - some have quite thick mint sauce, others are quite runny - so your local curry house will be different to others.  We've even had readers saying that by watering down our recipe, it makes it more like their local restaurant.  Maybe that's the key!  But, it's fair to say that most restaurants will buy such ingredients in quantity, so it's unlikely that they'll be the same brand as you'd find in your local supermarket.  In fact, the brand you mentioned in your message (which we've edited out on the website) is probably the poshest supermarket chain in the country!  It's unlikely that any curry house will be shopping there for their ingredients!  So think about the type of ingredients an Indian restaurant would use, and how it compared to that you'd get from your local supermarket.  We're not saying they use substandard ingredients - just not top of the range brands.  Upper class restaurants probably do - but we're talking about good honest Balti fayre here.  A trip around ethnic shops should introduce you a whole range of brands you've never heard of before.  Worth a look.  Happy shopping!

Please close this window to return to the baltibook.co.uk website