Curry King Lodue Miah counts on his home cooking sauce, Madhuban

Curry current

A survey by the UK market researchers Mintel recently confirmed that curry is the most popular dining out and take-away food, and is also rapidly becoming the most often cooked-at-home ethnic meal in the UK. In total, the UK citizens spend £3 billion every year on curry, in what undoubtedly seems their favourite food.

Lodue Miah, owner of one of Hampshire’s top restaurants, the Madhuban Tandoori, 94 Station Road, Liss, knew this only too well. He opened his first Indian restaurant in 1981, and by 1993 he owned a chain of seven curry houses throughout England.

Lodue was repeatedly asked by his customers why commercially sold curry sauces, available at shops and supermarkets across the UK, never quite captured that elusive restaurant taste.

Determined to find out the answer, Lodue set out to develop a home cooking sauce that was indistinguishable from those at his restaurants. The result represented the UK’s most popular curries – korma, tikka masala, bhuna, hot madras, jalfrezi, Thai red, Thai green and balti. There is also a mint raita dip. It’s not only a first for Lodue’s area- Hampshire in southern England-it’s a first for the UK.

As the word spread, Lodue sold six of his restaurants to focus on perfecting the sauces that satisfied customers were buying as fast as he could make them. By 1995, the Madhuban curry sauces company was born.

Madhuban (meaning honey garden) is also the name of Lodue’s restaurant in Liss. Fresh and handmade, these sauces can be refrigerated for up to 12 weeks and are exceptionally easy-to-use.

Madhuban sauces are also available through a growing number of outlets in Spain, France, Greece and other parts of Europe.

www.madhuban.co.uk