Basic Curry Sauce (Onion-Tomato Masala)

Cooking

Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat and the Cumin Seeds.
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds, 3 tbsp Oil
When the Cumin Seeds start to crackle add the Ginger-Garlic paste and fry it until it turns golden brown (about 1 minute).
1 tbsp Ginger-garlic paste
Add the onions and fry until golden brown stirring frequently (about 15-20 minutes).
3 cups Onions
Lower the heat and add all the spices, except for the Garam Masala which will be added at the end. We cook the spices briefly at this point to allow them to flavor the oil, before adding the tomatoes.
2 Green Chilies, 1.5 tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder, 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder, 2 tsp Coriander Powder
Add the tomatoes and minced green chilies
1.5 cups Tomatoes
Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently, until the oil starts to separate out (about 15 minutes). Add the Garam Masala and mix it into the sauce.
1 tsp Garam Masala
When cooking any dish with this sauce, you would add the ingredients at this point and cook them in the sauce, and finally adjust the consistency by adding water or broth (if you prefer). Take care to not make the sauce too watery or it will taste very bland.
TIP: If you're cooking a meat dish such as Chicken Curry, add the chicken before adding the tomatoes. This is because the acid in the tomatoes will make the outside of the chicken tough making it hard to cook it. Once you've cooked the outside of the chicken you can add the tomatoes and continue with the rest of the process.