Great Indian cooking is as simple as getting your spices right.
There are perhaps as many Indian spice mixes -- or masalas-- as there are cooks (with garam masala being the most ubiquitous), but here's my modest attempt at putting down recipes for some of the most commonly used masalas in Indian kitchens. Sure, you can buy these all ready to go at an Indian grocery store or Whole Foods or on Amazon, but there is nothing quite like the aroma and freshness of a spice mix you've put together yourself to give your recipe that added zip. All you need are the whole spices and a hardy coffee grinder or blender, and you can make your own masala in minutes.
Spices have been used in India for centuries, not just because of the amazing flavor they impart to recipes, but also because they are extremely beneficial to health. An Indian cook's spice box is as valuable -- perhaps more -- than a medicine cabinet filled with capsules and tablets. Finger bleeding? Press some turmeric on it and it will heal in no time. Even better, it will minimize the scar. Got a cold? Stir a few warming spices like ginger, cinnamon, black pepper, turmeric and cardamom into some milk and you will be singing in no time. In fact, in recent years, study after study has hailed the healing power of spices, and their amazing natural preservative properties:
- Cinnamon is known as a potent warrior against heart disease and diabetes.
- Ginger not only soothes your digestive system, it can aid in memory.
- Nutmeg is an anti-inflammatory that can fight cancer.
- Chili powder-- that vibrant red spice that adds the famous heat to Indian cooking -- revs up your metabolism and can lower blood pressure.
- Turmeric, the spice to beat all spices, is an anti-inflammatory, fights cancer, reduces arthritis symptoms, improves the body's anti-oxidant capacity, can help with Alzheimer's and depression, and can fight heart disease., among other things.
So what's stopping you? Go on, add some of the goodness of spices to your kitchen and your cooking. All of the recipes below are individually printable (look for the tiny "print" button under the photo in each recipe), and most make enough masala for several servings. Store any extras in air-tight jars in a dark, cool place.
Over the years, I've expanded this list to also include recipes from regions and countries around the world that use their own spice mixes. So you'll also find here recipes for Thai curry pastes -- green, yellow, and red -- Harissa and Ras el Hanout from Morocco, Berbere from Ethiopia, and so on.
This is a living list, meaning I will update it when I have a new spice mix that's good enough to share. And finally, if you have requests for masala recipes, all you have to do is ask!
Biryani Masala Spice Mix
A homemade biryani masala spice mix takes minutes to make, and rewards you with amazing flavor.
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Servings: 3 uses (approx)
Calories: 91kcal
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coriander seeds
- 2 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon shah jeera (black cumin seeds)
- 2 dry bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon dagad phool (also called stone flower)
- 2 inch cinnamon stick
- 10 cloves
- 1 teaspoon mace
- 1 tablespoon peppercorns
- 7 pods green cardamom pods
- 2 pods black cardamom
- 2 teaspoon kasoori methi (dry fenugreek leaves)
- 2 tablespoon fried onion (use the kind you get from the store, like French's, or at the Indian store. Onions fried at home would contain too much oil which could go rancid over time)
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon dry pomegranate seeds (anardana)
- 4 dry plums (chopped into smaller pieces)
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients except the plums in a spice grinder or a blender. Process into an even but coarse powder.
- Mix in the plums and store in an airtight jar, in the refrigerator or in a cool, dark place in your pantry or kitchen.
Nutrition
Serving: 2heaping tablespoon (approx) | Calories: 91kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Sodium: 33mg | Potassium: 310mg | Fiber: 7g | Vitamin A: 610IU | Vitamin C: 4.2mg | Calcium: 139mg | Iron: 5.7mg
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Biryani Masala Paste
This Biryani Masala Paste is a great, aromatic spice mix to use in biryani and other rice dishes.
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Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 15kcal
Ingredients
- 1 small onion , very thinly sliced, then fried in a fairly hot griddle for about 10-15 minutes, stirring often, until the onion turns brown and crispy. You don’t want to leave the onion unattended too long because onions contain sugar and will burn.
- 10 prunes (dry plums)
- 4 bay leaves
- 4 1- inch cinnamon sticks
- 10 black cardamom
- 10 green cardamom pods
- 10 black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon aamchoor
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients in a blender, add just enough water to make the blades turn, and let it all roll away into a smooth paste. You will need about half of this paste for the biryani recipe and can store the rest of it in an airtight container in the freezer…for a long, long time.
Nutrition
Calories: 15kcal
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Chana Masala spice mix
A spice mix for popular restaurant recipes like Chana Masala and Rajma.
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 10kcal
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 3 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 3 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 3 dried bay leaves
- 3 cloves
- 6 green cardamom pods
- 1 ½- inch piece of cinnamon
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients in a spice grinder and process until you have a powder.
Nutrition
Serving: 1.5tablespoon | Calories: 10kcal
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Sambar Powder
A mix of lentils and spices used to make the south Indian dal, Sambar, or Kuzhambu.
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 10kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup coriander seeds
- ⅓ cup black peppercorns
- ⅓ cup tuvar dal
- ⅓ cup chana dal (Bengal gram dal)
- 1 heaping tablespoon fenugreek (methi) seeds
- 1 heaping tablespoon mustard seeds
- 8-10 dry red chillies
- 2 tablespoon turmeric
Instructions
- Roast all ingredients, one at a time, on the skillet. You want them to be aromatic and two or three shades darker than they were, but don't let them burn or darken too much. Since the turmeric is already powdered, toast it very lightly, for only about a minute-- if you toast it last, you can even do this in the already-hot skillet with the heat turned off.
- Put all the toasted spices including turmeric into a spice grinder or blender and process to a very fine powder.
Recipe notes
Spices for the sambar and rasam powders are typically sun-dried for a couple of days, then ground into a fine powder. I skillet-roast the spices for expediency and it works fine.
Nutrition
Calories: 10kcal
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Rasam Powder
A spice mix used to make the aromatic south Indian dal or soup, Rasam.
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 12kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup coriander seeds
- ⅓ cup tuvar dal
- ⅓ cup black peppercorns
- 3 tablespoon chana dal (Bengal gram dal)
- 2 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 8-10 dry red chillies
- 2 tablespoon turmeric
Instructions
- Toast the spices lightly on a dry skillet one by one until they turn aromatic and are two or three shades darker. Don't burn them and stir them constantly. Toast the turmeric lightly and add to a spice grinder or blender along with the other spices.
- Process everything into a slightly coarse powder.
Nutrition
Serving: 1tablespoon | Calories: 12kcal
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Kolhapuri Masala
A spice mix made with lavangi chilies from Kolhapur, in India.
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 130kcal
Ingredients
- 8 dry red chillies, use Kolhapuri lavangi chilies if you can find them, or replace with any other hot red chili
- 1 cup coriander seeds
- 2 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 8 cloves garlic
- 1 large onion
- 12 cloves
- 12 green cardamom pods
- 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon mace
- ¼ cup sesame seeds
- 1 2- inch piece of cinnamon
- 4 large bay leaves
- 2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
Instructions
- Roast all the ingredients one at a time (except the turmeric), until they are a couple of shades darker and aromatic. Roast the garlic and the onion until dark spots appear, but don't let them burn.
- Remove everything to a dish to cool, and then place in a blender. Blend into a coarse powder. I sometimes add some coconut milk, blend the masala into a paste and then freeze it.
Nutrition
Calories: 130kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 13mg | Potassium: 383mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 5.5mg | Calcium: 260mg | Iron: 6.2mg
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Goda Masala
Goda masala, which translates to "sweet masala" is a milder version of garam masala used in the kitchens of Maharashtra. It includes coconut, which tamps down the spice a little.
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Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 63kcal
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 4 cloves
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 4 1-inch sticks cinnamon
- 4 dry bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon dagad phool (stone flower, optional)
- 20 peppercorns
- 2 tablespoon fennel
- 2 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds (use the white poppy seeds, if possible, but if you can't find these the black seeds are fine)
- ½ cup dry coconut (copra) (shredded or broken into small pieces. This is a kind of coconut that's been dried before use. It has a different flavor from fresh coconut.)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a small skillet. Roast the masala ingredients until lightly brown and fragrant. Fry the sesame seeds, poppy seeds and coconut last and keep a close eye on it because it can burn in an instant.
- Cool, powder in a spice grinder, and store in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Calories: 63kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 126mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 19IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 2mg
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Panch Phoron (Bengali Five Spice Mix)
Perhaps the simplest of the spice mixes, because there's no grinding involved. Also easy to remember-- you need the five spices in the same proportions. The five spices of Panch Phoran create incredible culinary alchemy when used together, complimenting and mingling with each other perfectly to enhance the main dish.
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Servings: 5 tablespoons
Calories: 22kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon nigella seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight jar.
Nutrition
Calories: 22kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 5mg | Potassium: 67mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 15IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1.9mg
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Rajasthani Garam Masala
A spice mix unique to the Indian state of Rajasthan
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Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 32kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon ajwain seeds (carom seeds)
- 1 black cardamom pod
Instructions
- Roast the spices on a dry skillet over medium heat, about five minutes or until the spices turn a few shades darker and fragrant.
- Grind to a powder in a spice grinder and store in an air-tight container.
Nutrition
Calories: 32kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 54mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 40IU | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 2.5mg
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Dhansak Masala
This powdered spice mix is used to make dhansak, an aromatic dal dish that hails from India's Parsi community.
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Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 17kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 red chillies
- 2 black cardamom pods
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 1- inch stick of cinnamon
- 4 cloves
- ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
Instructions
- In a dry skillet, over medium heat, roast all the ingredients except the turmeric. When the spices start to exude an aroma, in about 5-7 minutes, and the coriander seeds are a couple of shades darker, turn off the heat.
- Add the spices to a coffee grinder with the turmeric. Process into a fine powder.
Nutrition
Calories: 17kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 3mg | Potassium: 51mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1.1mg
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Caribbean Spice Mix
This spice mix is perfect to sprinkle into curries and vegetable sides for a striking, Caribbean flavor.
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Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 62kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 5 cloves
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
Instructions
- Heat a dry skillet on medium heat. Toast the spices together until a couple of shades darker. Powder in a coffee grinder.
Nutrition
Calories: 62kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 12mg | Potassium: 203mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 40IU | Vitamin C: 1.1mg | Calcium: 100mg | Iron: 4.7mg
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Trinidadian Spice Mix
A spicy mix for curries, stews and rubs.
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Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 27kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 10-15 black peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi seeds)
Instructions
- Roast all the spices together in a small, dry skillet until they turn a couple of shades darker. Be vigilant and stay with them-- you don't want them to burn.
- Grind into a fine powder in a coffee grinder or spice grinder. Store any unused spice mix in an airtight jar in a dark place.
Nutrition
Calories: 27kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 5mg | Potassium: 82mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1.1mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 1.9mg
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Vegan Thai Red Curry Paste
A vegan Thai red curry paste without fish sauce, but just as tasty.
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Servings: 3 uses
Calories: 213kcal
Ingredients
- ½ onion (diced)
- 3 red chili peppers
- 1-inch piece galangal , sliced thinly (use ginger as a substitute)
- 1 stalk lemongrass (trim the top and the hard outer leaves and slice finely. If you can't use this, use the zest of two limes instead)
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoon tamari (or soy sauce)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients in the grinder but add just enough oil to keep the blades moving. Add the rest of the oil if needed, to make a fairly smooth paste.
Nutrition
Calories: 213kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Sodium: 788mg | Potassium: 121mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin C: 6.4mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1.5mg
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Vegan Thai Yellow Curry Paste
A vegan Thai yellow curry paste without fish sauce
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Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 139kcal
Ingredients
- 2 Thai bird's eye chilies (or other hot red chili peppers)
- 2 stalks lemongrass (use juice of 2 limes and their zest as a substitute)
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 2 shallots
- 1-inch piece galangal (use ginger if you can't find this)
- 1 small plum tomato
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1-inch piece cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon tamari (or soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ cup coconut milk
Instructions
- Place all ingredients and ½ cup of the coconut milk in a blender bowl. Blitz into a smooth paste, adding more coconut milk if needed to keep the blades moving.Store in an airtight container in the freezer.
Nutrition
Calories: 139kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 514mg | Potassium: 300mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 130IU | Vitamin C: 5.5mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 3.3mg
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Harissa Paste
A recipe for vegan Harissa paste from Morocco
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Servings: 4 uses
Calories: 201kcal
Ingredients
- 15 red chilies (soaked for about 2 hours and then drained)
- 8 cloves garlic (minced)
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
Instructions
- Roast the cumin and coriander seeds lightly in a skillet.
- Add the cumin and coriander along with other ingredients to a food processor. Process into a fairly smooth paste. You can freeze the remaining paste in an air-tight jar.
Nutrition
Calories: 201kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 18mg | Potassium: 593mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 1605IU | Vitamin C: 244.6mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 2.5mg
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Balti Sauce
Balti Sauce is a spice paste used in Britain, that originated in the country's Pakistani community. It works great as a base for "meaty" vegetables and curries.
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Servings: 3 uses
Calories: 80kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 4 cloves
- 2 small bay leaves
- 3 dry red chilies
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 3 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 medium tomato , diced
- 2 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- Heat a skillet. Dry-roast the bay leaves, coriander, cumin, fennel, mustard, cardamom, cloves, bay leaves and chilies until they are slightly darker and fragrant, about three to four minutes.
- Turn off the heat, remove the ingredients to a blender, and to the hot skillet add the turmeric, curry powder, onion powder, garlic powder and ginger powder. Stir a bit to roast in the hot skillet without turning on the heat. Add to the blender.
- Add the vinegar, tomato and oil to the blender. Blend into a very smooth paste.
Nutrition
Calories: 80kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 107mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Vitamin C: 0.9mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 2.3mg
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Kadai Masala
A Kadai Masala recipe for dishes like Kadai Tofu Paneer.
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Servings: 1 use
Calories: 79kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
- 3 cloves
- 3 green cardamom pods
- 1-inch stick cinnamon , broken into small pieces
- 2 tablespoon kasoori methi
- 3 dry red chili peppers
Instructions
- In a pan, roast all of the dry-roast ingredients until fragrant and the coriander is a couple of shades deeper. Set aside to cool for a few minutes, then grind into a fine powder in a coffee or spice grinder.
Nutrition
Calories: 79kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 12mg | Potassium: 231mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 3.4mg | Calcium: 173mg | Iron: 4.7mg
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Ras el hanout
A fragrant Moroccan spice mix with all spice, coriander, cumin, paprika, and more. Use it in tagines and stews.
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Servings: 3 uses
Calories: 15kcal
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon all spice corns
- ½ teaspoon cloves
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients in a spice grinder and grind into a coarse powder. Preserve in an air-tight jar at room temperature.
Nutrition
Calories: 15kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 3mg | Potassium: 41mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg
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Robert Pennington
Made this delicious spice mix for the first time tonight and loved it. I didn't dry-roast the kasoori methi though - should I have?
Vaishali
Hi Robert, which one did you make? Was it the biryani masala? There are a few other spice mixes here with kasoori methi.
Vijay
Hi great spice mixes. It comes in handy to follow through.
I love the yin yang spice box. Do you know where I can find it ?
Thanks,
Vijay
Vaishali
Hi Vijay, it was sold by a company called Gitadini.
Herb
Hi Vaishali,
It's been a while since I've written but I went to make bhaji today only to find that I dont have enough of the Bhaji Masala. Do you have a mix you could post or a good substitution?
Thanks!
Vaishali
Hi Herb, I'll try and get something up soon, but meanwhile you could use garam masala.
Radhika
Hi Vaishali, just made a big batch of your South Indian chickpea curry masala. This is the ONLY way I cook chickpeas after I discovered that recipe. Came here looking for Thai paste recipe without too many specialty ingredients, and I found this treasure. Chickpeas in thai paste might be just one more recipe I am willing to try out 🙂 You Rock! Thanks for sharing your talent with the whole wide world
Vaishali
Awesome, Radhika, and I have just the recipe for you. 🙂 This is one of my favorites in a rush. https://holycowvegan.net/vegan-thai-curried-chickpeas-thai-red-curry-paste/
Malavika
Thanks so much for creating these! They are incredible. My family is from India but I was born in the US so I have little experience cooking indian food except for buying the store mixed "kitchen king" type of spice blends when my husband and I make indian food for dinner. This will be so helpful for us!!!
Vaishali
Malavika, so happy to hear!
Glynis
Thrilled to find these spice recipes while browsing your site. Wonderful to have them all in one place. Thank you.
Vaishali
Glad it's useful! 🙂
Radha
This is such an incredible resource, Vaishali. I have almost stopped buying spice mixes in the store. So much better to make your own. And the best part is it takes so little time.
Mary
Hi V!!
What a fantastic collection of spice recipes! This is superb. I grind my own spices, because I like the fresh stuff. These look outstanding. Thank you very much for this. I wanted to order a new grinder, but I have to use the Canadian amazon website. We can order from that one, but it will cost a small fortune. Rats.
I am still waiting for you to open a vegan restaurant here in Toronto....lol xoxo
Vaishali
Haha, thanks Mary. 😀
WonderWoman
I've seen this masala dabba at
Ambika Devi
Vaishali, aside from an amazingly delicious offering of spices recipes, that is by far the coolest tiffin I have ever seen! Where did you get that?
Todd
Regarding cardamom pods, do you mean grind the whole pods or just the seeds inside?
Vaishali
The whole pods-- the green ones with the relatively tender skins.
phils
Hi Vaishali,
Living in South Africa where we have thousands of Indian ladies one would think finding a Ginger and Garlic Masala mix will be easy, no way!
All one can find is a Masala paste, a mixture of garlic, ginger and chillies, I have a lot of other spices and would prefer doing my own
dry mix, it is also easy to find spices if and when I need.
I have ready mixed Gharam Masala, Jeera ( Cumin), Dhania( Coriander), Somph (Fennel), Turmeric, Chili Powder and Nutmeg
I used to get a dry Ginger and Garlic mix from an Indian lady but she moved her business away and my Masala is at a critical level.
Most shops around sell ready mix packets of just Ginger and Garlic, I just need to know what else is mixed in with it and what
quantities.
I will be grateful if you can help
Thanks
phils
Vaishali
Hi Phils, there are so many different Indian spice mixes, and even more mixes created by immigrant Indians in foreign lands. A ginger and garlic masala mix -- that includes more than just ginger and garlic -- sounds like it might be something unique to South Africa's large Indian community-- I've never come across it before. Sorry I am not much help, but I will explore it and meanwhile, perhaps there are other readers who have an idea? If so, feel free to pipe in.
Anonymous
Thanks Vaishli, I do hope someone can come up with a solution
kirtiyadav
I have saved this list and I will start making it so that I don't buy from outside. Thanks for sharing such a elaborate list.
jot
i want this masala box in my kitchen
Vaishali
Sold by Gitadini-- there's a link in the blog.
Mary
I saw a recipe that calls for shish kabob masala and I was wondering which of the above might work best or if there was a specific shish kabob masala seasoning recipe I could make at home?
Anonymous
Beautiful description of masalas. Just loved it.
Asmita
Nice post..it's helps to everyone..can u tell me where can I get this beautiful Spicebox???I want it in my kitchen..pls reply
Vaishali Honawar
Hi Asmita, it is sold by Gitadini.
Chris
Thank you Arpitha, for this post..it is now my go to for Indian spice mixes...it is much appreciated.
sage
just curious...where do you buy your whole spices? is there a good online merchant you use that has reasonable prices and organic options? thanks!
Vaishali Honawar
Hi Sage, I buy them from my local Indian grocery store, but Amazon is a good source.
uthra
very useful. tried sambar, came out very well
Vaishali Honawar
Uthra, thanks for letting me know!
brugesvegan
Great post. very usefull, thanks!
Laura Fergusson
I'm new to the DC area and I am looking for a good spice market to pick up some Indian spices. In particular I need ajwian and urad dal for a Thanksgiving dish. Do you have any reccomendations for me?
Vaishali Honawar
Hi Laura, I go to the Patel Brothers on University Blvd in Langley Park, MD, or Daily Spices on Lee Highway in Fairfax, Va. Both have all the spices you will need.
Rashna
Am looking for a Dhansak masala in paste form. What can I add to the dry ingredients to make it into a paste? Thanks a lot. Lovely page!
Vaishali Honawar
Hi Rashna, you can just add water. Or add the dry masala where the recipe calls for a paste.
Rashna
Thanks Vaishali
Shilpa
Hi Vaishali
These spice blends are awesome. Am thinking of following your recipes and do them at home.I would love to know your recommendations on blenders for both dry and wet grinding. I live in the United States
Thanks a ton
Shilpa
Vaishali
Hi Shilpa, I love my Vitamix because I can grind all of my heavy Indian masalas and even dosa batter in it. The Vitamix is a little pricey, but well worth the investment, in my opinion. Before I got this one, I had a Cuisinart but it died after about four or five years of blending so I wouldn't really recommend it for the heavy grinding required for Indian dishes.
The Vitamix I bought from Costco came with a dry-grinding jar which is good to make garam masala, sambar powder, etc. Or to dry-grind smaller quantities you can use a coffee grinder-- I use a Braun one which I got for about 20 bucks and it's pretty good.
Hope that helps. 🙂
Shilpa
Thankyou very much Vaishali, Vitamix it is then 🙂
mike
Made up a batch of your sambar masala and used it in a spinach and potato Dahl using yellow moong dahl. Beautiful dish which everybody really enjoyed. I also used the garam masala from the recipe on manjulas website which is a really tasty spice mix. Thank you kindly
mike
Vaishali
Hi Mike, so happy you made the sambar masala and thanks for letting me know! Moong with potatoes sounds super delicious -- I have to give that a try. I love Manjula's website, and have to check out her garam masala mix.
Arpitha Shankar
this is an awesome post...i loved the biriyani mix especially
Vaishali
Thanks, Arpitha, glad you found it useful 🙂
Jully shah
Awesome collection of masala recepie ..... 🙂 just wanted to know from where did u get your spice masala box ...... It's very unique ...... Thank you for contributing such valuable info for everyone.
Vaishali
Hi Jully, it is sold by GitaDini.
Shamila Patricia
i am not really a cook....trying to get my hands on some traditional home cooked meal for my family.....going vege isn't a problem but getting to it is a matter
Denise
This is great!!!...I've just ordered me a masala daba which I'm very excited about!!! Garam masala is one I particularly wanted the recipe for so yea!!!! 🙂