SPICES for Indian Cooking!

Biryani masala 175 gm

Ingredients
30 gm cumin seeds or jira
30gm coriander seeds or dhania
30 gm green cardamom seeds or chota elaichi
30 gm black peppercorns
20 gm black cardamom or bara elaich
20 gm javitri or mace
10 gm stick cinnamon, broken up or dalchini
10 gm clove or long
10 gm kebab chini or cassia buds
5 gm grated nutmeg or jaiphal
1 gm saffron (optional)

Preparation
Roast cumin, coriander, green cardamom, black peppercorn, black cardamom, cinnamon, javitri, clove, kebab chini. But don’t burn them.
Then make into powder in a dry grinder with the rest of ingredients

CHAAT MASALA

Chaat masala

60 gm Coriander seeds
10 gm Cumin seeds
5 gm Ajwain OR carum seed
2-3 nos Whole dry red Chilies
45 gm black salt crystals
2 gm Citric acid
5 gm Dry Mango powder or aamchur
15 gm Salt
10 gm Garam masala
5 gm White pepper powder

Roast the coriander, cumin, ajwain seeds separately and powder them with chilies, black salt and citric acid.
Mix in the remaining ingredients.
Store in an air-tight container.

CHETTINAD MASALA

Chettinad powder (podi masala)

Ingredients
500 gm cashew nuts
500 gm roasted channa dal
6 nos star anise or panch tara
100 gm khus khus or poppy seed
10 gm big cardamom
5 gm cloves
100 gm saunf or fennel
5 no bay leaf


Method
Roast the above ingredients and make into a powder

HYDERABADI CURRY POWDER

75 gm Coriander seeds
45 gm Cumin seeds
10 gm Turmeric powder
15 gm Fenugreek seeds
30 gm Mustard seeds
15 gm Whole black peppers
2 gm Cloves
1 gm Ground nutmeg
5 nos Red chilies
10 nos dried curry leaves
5 gm Cinnamon stick
5 gm green cardamom
4 nos Bay leaves


In a heavy-bottomed pan fry all the ingredients for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat. Grind all the roasted ingredients together to a powder. Store in an airtight container.

GARAM MASALA

Garam Masala for mildly spiced gravies

15 gm pieces of cinnamon stick
125g cardamom seeds
125g whole cloves
125g whole cumin seed
60g whole coriander seeds
125g whole black peppercorns

Roast all the spices before grinding
Put all the ingredients in dry grinder to make fine powder
Sieve and store in a sterilized, dry and airtight container.

Garam masala for meat preparation 1kg

400 gm cumin whole
120 gm coriander seed
90 gm black cardamom seed
70 gm black pepper whole
60 gm green cardamom
40 stick cinnamon
60 gm ginger powder
40 gm clove
40 gm mace
30 gm bay leaf
4 gm nutmeg

Roast all the spices before grinding
Put all the ingredients in dry grinder to make fine powder
Sieve and store in a sterilized, dry and airtight container.



Garam masala for rich gravies and items 900 gm

180 gm cumin whole
150 gm black cardamom
150 gm black pepper corn
90 gm green cardamom
60 gm fennel
60 gm coriander seed
40 gm clove
40 stick cinnamon
40 gm mace
40 gm black cumin
30 gm ginger powder
30 gm bay leaf
30 gm dried rose petal
6 gm nutmeg

Roast all the spices before grinding
Put all the ingredients except ginger powder in dry grinder to make fine powder
Transfer to a clean dry bowl, add ginger powder and mix well
Sieve and store in a sterilized, dry and airtight container.

PESHWARI MASALA

Peshwari masala 450 gm


100 gm roasted cumin powder
50 gm red chili powder
50 gm turmeric powder
50 gm almond powder
40 gm black cumin
30 gm cashew nut powder
30 gm dried apricot
30 gm dried pistachio powder
25 gm cinnamon
25 gm clove
25 gm cardamom
15 gm panther ka pool
12 gm bay leaf
10 gm kebab chini

Roast all the spices before grinding
Put all the ingredients except ginger powder in dry grinder to make fine powder
Transfer to a clean dry bowl, add ginger powder and mix well
Sieve and store in a sterilized, dry and airtight container.

POTLI MASALA

YEILD 1.3 kg

This is one of the secret recipes of the Awadhi chefs, but I gathered most of the ingredients from a master chef in Lucknow, after much bribing, but I am not so sure whether he gave me the full list or not. Still this one is the king if all gram masalas

150 gm roasted channa dal
100 gm dried mint leaves
100 gm roasted cumin powder
100 gm black salt
50 gm coriander seed
50 gm dry ginger powder
50 gm aamchur
50 gm fennel powder
50 gm charmagaj powder
50 gm white sea salt
30 gm green cardamom
30 gm black pepper corn
30 gm black cardamom
30 gm dried roots of poppy seed
30 gm taal michri
30 gm cashew nut powder
30 gm poppy seed
30 gm dried basil leaf seed
25 gm red chili powder
25 gm dried roots of sunflower
20 gm fenugreek powder
20 gm clove
20 gm cinnamon
20 gm mace powder
15 gm yellow chili powder
15 gm mace powder
15 gm black cumin
15 gm white pepper powder
15 gm bay leaf
15 gm dried rose petal
15 gm kachri
15 gm tal makhana
10 gm nutmeg
10 gm turmeric
10 gm sandal wood powder
10 gm gadder atta dried
10 gm pathar ka phool
10 gm dried pipal
10 gm star aniseed
10 gm white sesame seed
10 gm kebab chini
5 gm methi seed
1 gm saffron

SOUTH INDIAN GARAM MASALA

South Indian garam masala


100 gm whole black peppers
80 gm cloves- 1/2 cup
5 gm grated nutmeg
10 no red chilies
15 gm cinnamon stick (broken into pieces)
200 gm green cardamoms
50 gm black cardamoms
200 gm coriander seeds
100 gm cumin seeds


In a heavy-bottomed pan fry all the ingredients for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat. Grind all the roasted ingredients together to a powder. Store in an airtight container.

GOAN PERI PERI MASALA(RED MASALA)

( courtesy Chef Palash Mitra )

VINEGAR AS REQUIRED
GINGER 50 GM
GARLIC 50 GM
CORIANDER SEEDS 5 GM
CINNAMON 5 GM
CARDAMOM 5 GM
CLOVES 5GM
BLACK PEPPER 5 GM
RED CHILLIES 200 GM
MACE 5 GM

Paste all the ongredienst together with the vinegar.No water should be used for the masala.When the paste is fine its ready.

GOAN VINDALOO MASALA

( Courtesy Chef Palash Mitra )

Goan food is tremendously influenced by the Portugese settelers who established Goa as a colony. The Vindaloo is synonymous with Goan food and is a lift off from the erstwhile Portugese colonist.
VIN(WINE IN COLLOQIALPORTUGESE)+ AEOL(GARLIC IN PORTUGESE)= VINDALOO (GOAS' INFAMOUS)

Mustard seeds 5 gms
cumin 5 gms
red chillies(fresh/seeds removed) 10 gm
garlic 1/2pod
ginger 5 gm
onion(small) 50 gm

Mix all the ingredients.Soak overnight in water.Strain and grind with vinegar.
Heat oil in apan and cook the masala till it starts to leave oil from the sides.Keeps in the refrigerator for1-2 weeks.

Cool tips
1. Use Thai "birds eye" chilies for that mirror cracking effect.
2. Use dry red chilies or normal chillies with seed removed if you dont want to blast away to the moon the next morning(after having the vindaloo)!!
3.the best vinegar to use is goan toddy vinegar.Use synthetic vinegar otherwise.

Tandoori chaat masala

1.25 kg

400 gm ginger powder
250 gm mango powder
100 gm cumin whole
100 gm black salt
100 gm black pepper corn
100 gm salt
60 gm green cardamom
60 gm dried mint leaf
40 gm fenugreek
40 gm yellow chili powder
30 gm clove
10 stick cinnamon
10 gm carum seed
10 gm hing powder
8 gm tartaric
4 gm mace

Kashmiri Garam Masala

• Cinnamon stick- 4 (broken into pieces)
• Seeds from 1 cup green cardamoms
• Whole black peppers- 1/4 cup
• Black cumin seeds- 1/2 cup
• Cloves- 1/4 cup
• Grated nutmeg- 1/2
• Fennel seeds- 1/2 cup
In a heavy-bottomed pan fry all the ingredients for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat. Grind all the roasted ingredients together to a powder. Store in an airtight container.

Tandoori Masala

• Red chili powder (cayenne)- 1 tablespoon
• Coriander seeds- 1 tablespoon
• Cumin seeds- 1 tablespoon
• Garlic powder- 2 tsp
• Dry ginger powder- 2 tsp
• Dry mango powder- 2 tsp
• Dried mint- 1/2 tsp
• Few drops of red food coloring
Grind the cumin and coriander seeds into a fine powder. Add all the other spice powders & the red food coloring and mix well. Store in an airtight container.