# Sauce consistency



## Suthseaxa

Can anyone advise on how to get a decent sauce, particularly with curries? I have a problem where I serve a sauce and I don't get a sauce, I get a pile of chopped/boiled vegetable fibres with water leaking from it. 

I recently made a very nice sauce with a blended boiled onion paste and yoghurt and, when served, the sauce was just as above: water and then a blended paste beneath it.

The yoghurt has not curdled, but I just cannot get all of the components of the sauce to stay together. Any tips?


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## GotGarlic

How exactly do you make your curries? In particular, where are the vegetable fibers coming from?


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## blissful

I put sour cream, or coconut milk, or cream, or butter, or kefir, in my curries, which when cooked, they thicken the sauce (with the vegetable fibers). It does take a little while to get the consistency right. When I see that a swipe of the spoon through the sauce, shows me a little of the pan, it is usually thick enough for my tastes.


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## caseydog

I don't do curries, but sauces in general need to be brought to a simmer, and reduced to the right consistency. They won't thicken until brought to a boil (simmer). That simmering process should reduce the water content of your sauce. 

Also, are you using raw veggies? They are loaded with water. If I am using veggies in a sauce, I sweat them down first, to steam off some of the water. 

That's all I got. I hope it helps. 

CD


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## Suthseaxa

The main sauce I have in mind if a sauce of blended onion paste and yoghurt. I seem to have either  a really thick, clingy paste, or this split sauce, with little in between. Perhaps I just need to simmer the sauce for longer to cook it all out?


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## GotGarlic

Suthseaxa said:


> The main sauce I have in mind if a sauce of blended onion paste and yoghurt. I seem to have either  a really thick, clingy paste, or this split sauce, with little in between. Perhaps I just need to simmer the sauce for longer to cook it all out?


That would probably help. As caseydog said, raw vegetables, including onions, contain a lot of water and that needs to be cooked off in order to thicken the sauce. It's easier to do that before you mix the onions with the yogurt.


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## buckytom

I agree that mighty casey has a big part to your answer (he did t strike out, this time  ). Sweat your veggies.

Also, use a low moisture yoghurt like Greek yoghurt.

They apparently eat well in Mudville, I guess.


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## caseydog

buckytom said:


> I agree that mighty casey has a big part to your answer (he did't strike out, this time  ).



Oh, give me time, and I'll strike out. 

CD

PS: It's Pork Roll


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## CakePoet

Can you give me the name of the curry dish?  I do curry  once a week and every one has differnt way of doing it.  Most things with  onion paste, the paste is  fried for a moment and   the yogurt, is added at the end.


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## CraigC

Why does everyone say "curry", as if it means the same thing to all? Are we supposed to "assume" what cultures "curry" you are talking about? Please specify.


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## dragnlaw

It 'might' help if you have your yogurt at room temperature or even warmed up somehow so that you are not adding it cold to hot.  

It sounds like your sauce is splitting. Are you using a low fat/no fat yogurt?


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## CakePoet

I do Indian, Sri Lankan and British  curries, 1 once a week due to my Scottish husband.  Better?
Anyway, show us the recipe.


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## GotGarlic

dragnlaw said:


> It 'might' help if you have your yogurt at room temperature or even warmed up somehow so that you are not adding it cold to hot.
> 
> It sounds like your sauce is splitting. Are you using a low fat/no fat yogurt?


I have added cold fat-free yogurt to pan sauces for seared chicken and it has not broken.


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## Stock Pot

*Cornstarch?*

This is probably anathema, but a lot of times I use a tablespoon or two of cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken a sauce.


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## CraigC

CakePoet said:


> I do Indian, Sri Lankan and British  curries, 1 once a week due to my Scottish husband.  *Better?*
> *Anyway, show us the recipe.*



The only time it would be "Better", is that when making a post using "curry" in the title, that you specify what type.

If you are asking me for a recipe, I've already posted them for a couple of scratch made Thai curry pastes.


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## Suthseaxa

It's in all sorts of recipes so there is no particular one recipe. Also, I can confirm the sauces are not splitting; the watery part of it is nice and creamy with yoghurt! I just have sticky pieces of chopped tomato or onion hanging around rather than all in one sauce. I'm going to try simmering for longer next time I try it  I should post the recipe for the fish (Mughlai) curry in which is definitely happened!


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## GotGarlic

Suthseaxa said:


> It's in all sorts of recipes so there is no particular one recipe. Also, I can confirm the sauces are not splitting; the watery part of it is nice and creamy with yoghurt! I just have sticky pieces of chopped tomato or onion hanging around rather than all in one sauce. I'm going to try simmering for longer next time I try it  I should post the recipe for the fish (Mughlai) curry in which is definitely happened!


If you're using the same basic method with different types of ingredients, except for the onion-yogurt sauce, it would be helpful to see if.


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## CakePoet

Suthseaxa; change recipe you are using. It could be the recipes fault.


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## caseydog

Suthseaxa said:


> It's in all sorts of recipes so there is no particular one recipe. Also, I can confirm the sauces are not splitting; the watery part of it is nice and creamy with yoghurt! I just have sticky pieces of chopped tomato or onion hanging around rather than all in one sauce. I'm going to try simmering for longer next time I try it  I should post the recipe for the fish (Mughlai) curry in which is definitely happened!



Again, I don't make curry, and I also don't cook with yogurt, but if you were to post a recipe, and your cooking process, it would probably get you some better responses. 

CD


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## dragnlaw

dragnlaw said:


> It 'might' help ....
> It sounds .... splitting. Are you using a low fat/no fat yogurt?





GotGarlic said:


> I have added cold fat-free yogurt.... and it has not broken.



Just a question, GG, just a question...  I too have also added cold and ...  sometimes it has not broken but many times it has.


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## GotGarlic

dragnlaw said:


> Just a question, GG, just a question...  I too have also added cold and ...  sometimes it has not broken but many times it has.


Okay. Um, is there a question here I'm missing?


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## blissful

When I was first making curry--I live in the midwest US and grew up never having made it or even tasted it for my first 30 years. I couldn't get the sauce cooked right because it would over cook the chunky vegetables. The sauce had a lot of small cut up veggies and I wanted something smooth. So I cooked the chunky vegetables almost done first, removed them. Made the sauce and when it was cooked, use a hand blender on it to make it smooth. Cook it down until it was the right consistency, then add back the rest of the vegetables. 

I'm particular about not overcooking the zucchini and broccoli, so especially for those, it's better either add them after the sauce is right, or have them cooked to add at the end.


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## medtran49

Looks like the OP has lost interest in this post, but I'd have to say either not enough fat or temp too high and it caused yogurt to curdle, or both.  Could be the recipe too.  It's weird that people will ask for help and then won't post the recipe, even when requested to more than once.


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## dragnlaw

medtran49 said:


> Looks like the OP has lost interest in this post, but I'd have to say either not enough fat or temp too high and it caused yogurt to curdle, or both.  Could be the recipe too.  It's weird that people will ask for help and then won't post the recipe, even when requested to more than once.



Glad to see we both had the same thoughts on the yogurt.

But about the OP;  I once joined a forum, posted a question, when I went back the next day... I couldn't figure out how to navigate the site and couldn't even find my original post. LOL  

the site was not like this forum. I belong to several forum with this exact same layout.  But even "way back when" I joined my first forum I had the dickens of a time learning the ropes.

So I usually give Single Posters the benefit of the doubt.


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## medtran49

The OP is not a "1-post wonder" and has 147 posts at current count.


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## jennyema

Yes.

In order to diagnose a problem like this, one needs to post the exact method and ingredients....


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## dragnlaw

Oh my!  I sincerely apologize! to suthsea! and to all  I obviously  misunderstood the intention of your post medtran and did not go back to check the OP.


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## GilliAnne

caseydog said:


> I don't do curries, but sauces in general need to be brought to a simmer, and reduced to the right consistency. They won't thicken until brought to a boil (simmer). That simmering process should reduce the water content of your sauce.
> 
> Also, are you using raw veggies? They are loaded with water. If I am using veggies in a sauce, I sweat them down first, to steam off some of the water.
> 
> That's all I got. I hope it helps.
> 
> CD



I know this is an old thread but I’ve only just come across it and wanted to say that’s a helpful comment about  sweating the veggies first. I used to wonder why recipes said to sweat/fry onions first when making a sauce and why they can’t be added later. Your comment explains why, so thank you!

Gillian


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## GilliAnne

Stock Pot said:


> This is probably anathema, but a lot of times I use a tablespoon or two of cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken a sauce.



Me too!

Gillian


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