Ask a British customer what goes on chips and “curry sauce” comes up within the first three answers. It is searched nearly 4,000 times a month in the UK, and plenty of takeaways get asked for it every night.
The trouble is that “curry sauce” means different things to different people. To a chip shop regular it is a hot, glossy gravy ladled over chips. To someone who grew up in Belgium or Germany it might be a sweet, spiced curry ketchup. To a burger bar it could be a creamy, cold curry sauce squeezed from a tub.
This guide explains the three main types, how they differ, what each one suits, and how to choose the right curry sauce for your kitchen. Everything BurgerPro stocks here is available in single tubs from the online shop as well as trade quantities.
Chip shop curry sauce. Served hot, usually made from a curry sauce mix or concentrate with water, with a smooth, gravy-like texture. Mildly spiced, slightly sweet and savoury. Needs heating and hot holding.
Curry ketchup. A cold, ready-to-squeeze sauce that blends tomato ketchup with curry spices. Sweet, tangy and gently spiced. Popular across Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
Cold curry sauce (Madras or curry mayo style). A cold, ready-to-squeeze sauce built around curry spice rather than ketchup. Smoother and more savoury than curry ketchup, and in the curry mayo style, creamy.
They are not substitutes for each other in every situation, but each has a place, and many takeaways end up stocking two.
The classic British chippy curry sauce is a warm, smooth sauce with a mild curry flavour (usually from curry powder and turmeric), a touch of sweetness, often from apple or other fruit, and a gloss that coats every chip. It is typically made by whisking a curry sauce mix or concentrate into hot water and holding it warm through service.
Fish and chip shops, Chinese takeaways and anywhere with a bain-marie or a hot well. Customers ordering “chips and curry” expect it hot, poured over the top or in a pot on the side. Expectations vary from shop to shop: some customers want it smooth, others like a fruity curry sauce with visible pieces, and Chinese takeaway curry sauce is a different style again.
It needs to be made, heated and held at a safe temperature. That means equipment, space and a hot holding routine, plus waste at the end of the night. For a burger bar, kebab house or chicken shop without a hot well, it is a lot of effort for one sauce.
If you want a homemade chip shop curry sauce recipe, most follow the same pattern: soften onion in oil, stir in curry powder and a little garlic, add stock and a spoon of something sweet such as apple or sugar, then simmer. Thicken with cornflour mixed with cold water and blend smooth with a hand blender. A dash of Worcestershire sauce is a common extra. It is quick to make, but it still has to be held hot and safely through service.
BurgerPro does not supply hot chip shop curry sauce mix. If your customers expect proper hot chippy curry and you have the kit to hold it, keep doing what you do. The two sauces below are for the many takeaways that want a curry option on the counter without the gravy routine.
Curry ketchup is exactly what it sounds like: ketchup and curry spice blended into one cold sauce. In Germany it is the sauce on currywurst; in Belgium and the Netherlands it is a frites shop staple.
Nawhal’s Curry Ketchup is described by the brand as a mix between ketchup and curry, with an amber colour, a soft texture and a slightly spicy taste that suits both sweet and savoury palates. It comes in 500ml and 950ml squeeze tubs.
It is sweeter and thinner than chippy curry. Customers expecting a hot gravy will notice the difference, so name it clearly as “curry ketchup” on the menu.
The third type is a cold curry sauce made for squeezing and dipping. Nawhal’s Madras Curry is described by the brand as a colourful, flavourful sauce that goes wonderfully with chicken and brings an Indian touch, with a medium spice level. Colona’s curry sauce is a cold emulsified sauce, yellow in colour, seasoned with mustard and curry, and BurgerPro stocks it in 20ml dipping pots.
Nawhal’s Madras comes in 500ml and 950ml tubs and a 5L BiBox. The whole range is under the Madras curry sauce tag.
It is served cold, straight from the tub, so it will not pour over chips like hot gravy. Present it as a dip or a drizzle rather than a “chip shop curry sauce” replacement and customers will get exactly what they expect.
Fish and chip shop with a hot well. Keep your hot chip shop curry sauce for chips. Add curry ketchup as a squeeze option for kids and sausages, and Madras dipping for fish bites or chicken if you sell them.
Burger bar. Curry ketchup for fries and hot dogs, Madras as a burger and chicken option. No hot holding needed.
Kebab house. Madras as a curry alternative to garlic mayo on chicken and wraps. Curry ketchup for chips. See our kebab shop sauces guide for the full counter.
Chicken shop. Madras is the priority. Put it in Colona curry dipping pots for meal boxes and in a squeeze tub at the pass.
Food truck or event caterer. Cold squeeze sauces only. No space for a bain-marie, and sealed pots and tubs travel well.
Both Nawhal’s sauces come in squeeze tubs, so staff can stripe fries or dress a wrap in one movement with a consistent portion. Madras also comes in a 5L BiBox for refilling squeeze bottles once it is selling steadily.
For delivery and meal boxes, the Colona curry dipping pot is the tidy option: sealed, upright and portioned. Our guide to sauce sachets, dipping pots, biboxes and buckets explains how to match format to service.
Before you change the menu, buy one 500ml Madras and one 500ml Curry Ketchup and put them in front of your staff and a few regulars with chips, a chicken tender and a burger. You will find out very quickly which one your customers reach for, and which dishes each one suits.
Most shops discover they want both: curry ketchup for chips and kids’ meals, Madras for chicken and wraps. Starting small means you only scale up the one that actually sells.
Name the sauce exactly. “Curry ketchup”, “Madras curry dip” and “chip shop curry sauce” are three different products, and customers who get one when they expected another tend to complain. A one-line description next to each (“sweet, spiced ketchup”, “medium curry dip”) saves a lot of awkward conversations at the counter.
It depends on the product. Nawhal’s states that its sauces are certified vegetarian and halal compatible, and Colona holds halal certification for its range. For hot chip shop curry sauce made from a mix, check the mix itself. Our post on halal burger sauce essentials covers what to look for.
A warm, smooth, mildly spiced sauce served over chips in British fish and chip shops and takeaways. It is usually made from a curry sauce mix or concentrate and kept hot through service.
Chip shop curry sauce is served hot and has a gravy-like texture. Curry ketchup is a cold, squeezable sauce made from ketchup blended with curry spice.
Nawhal’s Madras Curry is a smooth, cold squeeze sauce with a medium spice level, made to go with chicken and add an Indian-style curry flavour.
Mildly. Nawhal’s describes its Curry Ketchup as slightly spicy, with a sweet and savoury balance.
It works well as a cold alternative on chips, hot dogs and burgers, but it is sweeter and thinner. Name it clearly on the menu so customers know what to expect.
Chicken tenders, fillets, wings, chicken burgers, wraps and loaded fries.
A cold squeeze sauce. Curry ketchup suits fries and hot dogs; Madras suits chicken, wraps and dipping.
Nawhal’s Madras Curry, Curry Ketchup and Colona curry dipping pots all ship from BurgerPro’s Birmingham warehouse to anywhere in the UK, dispatched within 1 to 2 working days. Try a 500ml Madras or 500ml Curry Ketchup first, browse the full sauces range, or complete the wholesale enquiry form for trade pricing.
