Homemade Curry Powder

Mamma Jay

Curry powder is a combination of chilli powder (with added spices} and coriander powder. This is a recipe which I used to help my mother make, since my school days! When my father brought the ground curry powder from the local flour mill, the whole house was engulfed with the amazing strong roasted scent of curry powder. It actually made us hungry!

All throughout her life, my mother never bought ready- made curry powders and made no compromises, where taste and flavour was concerned. Now, that I have been making my own curry powder for quite a while, I cannot dream of using packets of ready-made curry powder in my cooking!

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Prep Time 40

Cook Time 10

Cuisine Indian

Ingredients

CHILLI POWDER

2 pieces of fresh dry turmeric (manjel/dry haldi), slightly crushed
4 tbsp uncooked rice (white rice or par boiled rice, preferably)
2 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp black peppercorns
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
200 grams dry chillies (medium hot)

CORIANDER POWDER

100 grams coriander seeds

Instructions

METHOD

CHILLI POWDER:

Roast the chillies slightly over low heat for about 5 minutes, so that it is crispy when cooled but not burnt.
Dry roast the uncooked rice until it swells and changes in colour/starts to pop.
Dry roast the cumin and fennel seeds and they should start to change colour, smell slightly fragrant or even pop. Switch off or remove from the flame.
Roast the fenugreek seeds very slightly until you get the slight scent of them. Immediately, transfer them to a bowl as it can continue to cook in the heat. Over roasted fenugreek tastes bitter and can spoil your chilli powder. Take care!
Slightly roast the dried turmeric and black peppercorns for about 1 minute.
Cool and grind them in small portions in your dry mill / coffee blender. Sieve it 3 times after each round of grinding.

CORIANDER POWDER:

Dry roast on very low heat.
When slightly fragrant, switch off the flame. If over fried, the curry will be bitter.
Leave to cool and grind in a dry mill blender.
Sieve 3 times after each round of grinding.
Cool the coriander powder and store in an air-tight container.

Notes

For those who prefer mild curries, use Kashmiri chillies.
I tend to use mild Kashmiri chilli powder with a little of roasted hot chilly powder whilst cooking. But if medium hot dry chillies are available, use that.
Curry powder – which is a blend of chilly powder and coriander powder, lasts for months in an air tight container.

Keyword chilli powder, curry powder recipe, homemade chilli powder, homemade curry powder, indian curry powder

Homemade Curry Powder