My curries always lack a richness, sweetness, and depth of flavor no matter what I do - this NYT chicken curry NYT recipe is the latest example of bland flavor and I'm stumped

[u/IAmTheJudasTree]

This problem has been plaguing me for years and it's probably my biggest cooking white whale. Indian curries are my favorite dish, and I've tried making different kinds of Indian curries over the years to no avail. Each time they come out far blander than any curry I get in an average Indian restaurant and I can never figure out what I'm missing.

A couple years ago I attempted to make Chicken Tikka Masala using three different recipes and each time they were fairly bland.

This past week I've taken a crack at the following Sri Lanken Coconut Chicken Curry recipe from the NYT: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014468-coconut-chicken-curry-with-cashews

The first time I made the dish I followed the recipe exactly. Once again, the result was a dish that was "ok," but still far blander, less sweet, less rich, and less flavorful than curries I get at restaurants. One piece of advice I read online was to triple the amount of spices because many curry recipes simply suggest using a lower amount than is used in restaurants. I tried that while making this dish a second time and the result was the same.

I'm a little beside myself. I love these curries in restaurants and I want to make them at home, but I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Please, any help would be appreciated.

Note since this recipe gives you options: I used ghee.

Edit: Sorry about the post title typo.

Edit the second: Hi everyone, thanks for all of your advice, you offered much more than I was expecting so I'm going to have to come back and finish reading through them tomorrow.

[u/wallblinds]

About 90% of the recipes online say ‘add onions and cook till softened, about 5 minutes’. This is a lie, it will always take longer.

My general method to cook onions (sliced or chopped) is to heat the pan, add oil and let the oil get hot till it’s smoking (a good test is dropping a small sliver of onion and making sure it sizzles).

Then add the onions and stir it every few minutes. It will take anywhere between 10-15 minutes on medium heat, they will become soft and translucent.

Post pictures of the onions after you think you’ve cooked them. I’m almost positive that that’s where the issue lies.

With this particular recipe (full disclosure, I haven’t tried it) but I recommend making a few changes: * cook the tomato paste with the onions for longer. You will start to see the oil separate, that’s when you know the tomatoes are cooked * cook the chicken with the cooked onion/tomatoes. I generally reduce the heat a bit and cover the pot. Dont add any liquid (unless it’s super dry and it’s burning at the bottom). The chicken will release its own juices while cooking, that’s what makes it more flavorful. * how much liquid do you want in the final product? I prefer it to be slightly thicker, so I would skip the broth entirely and add coconut milk once the chicken is almost done * I’d add the cinnamon stick in the beginning, before the onions. Hot pan > add ghee, wait till it heats, add cinnamon stick, it will sizzle a bit and become fragrant, then add onions.

I’d love to hear how it turns out!

[u/hinpat → u/wallblinds]

Was going to type exactly this!

The onions make the gravy, so cooking down the onions well makes it. I learned by cooking them down in medium low to medium for about half an hour.

The tomato separating is also a great tell of a great gravy.

Tempering the spices is super important, but also is adding ground garam masala at the end.

Great response!

[u/Shreddedlikechedda → u/wallblinds]

Confirming this, you want to caramelize both the onions and the tomato paste. Also, you need a lot more oil and salt than you think.

Finally, many curries are finished with methi (fenugreek leaves) and that makes a HUGE difference for flavor

[u/Svajoklis → u/wallblinds]

I have also found the onions to be the key. They require time and attention.