How to Make Curry Powder

You can create some delicious dishes with commercial curry powder, but making your own curry spice mix is much more fun and the sign of a true connoisseur. Our guide to mixing and grinding your own mixture will introduce you to the spices you'll need and the process you'll follow in order to make your own Indian delights.

Contents

How to Make Curry Powder Introduction Step 1: What You'll Need Step 2: Toast Your Spices Step 3: Create a Base Step 4: Grind Your Spices Step 5: Adjust Your Mixture Step 6: Use Your Curry Powder Conclusion

Introduction
You can create some delicious dishes with commercial curry powder, but making your own curry spice mix is much more fun and the sign of a true connoisseur. Our guide to mixing and grinding your own mixture will introduce you to the spices you'll need and the process you'll follow in order to make your own Indian delights. Read on to learn more about how to make curry powder. Making your own curry powder, rather than buying a glass jar of commercial curry powder at the grocery store, allows you to tailor the flavor of your curry to your own peculiar palate. Explore the spices that go into making curry powder to discover just what it is that draws you to that magical yellow dust

Step 1: What You'll Need

No one recipe exists for curry powder. In fact, in India, the composition of a curry powder depends on the region in which it is made and what ingredients are readily available. You can

follow an exact recipe, such as those listed below in the Resources section, or experiment to find your perfect combination. Ingredients

Coriander seedslightly sweet with hints of citrus and mint. Turmericbrightly yellow with an earthy bitterness Fenugreek seeds (almost always included, though Alton Brown has his own way of doing things)a sweet, yellow seed to be used with caution Cuminstrong, earthy aroma important to the overall flavor of the curry powder Ground or flake pepper (black, white, red or a combination included in most recipes)white pepper is made from the same plant as black pepper but has a milder flavor; red pepper is made from dried chili peppers Mustard seeds or dry mustard (optional but usually included)sharp, distinct flavor Cardamom (optional)expensive member of the ginger family with a sweet, flowery aroma Fennel seeds (optional)weaker licorice flavor than anise, slightly sweet Caraway seeds (optional)strong anise flavor Ginger (optional)sweet and spicy, best to use fresh Cinnamon (optional)sweet and flavorful; cassia is sometimes sold as cinnamon, but not as flavorful as the real thing Cloves (optional)strong, distinct flavor; to be used in small amounts Mace (optional)made from same plant as nutmeg with lighter flavor Curry leaves (optional)aromatic leaves typical in southern Indian curries.

Equipment

Coffee or spice grinder, blender, or mortar and pestle to grind spices Cake or saut pan to toast spices (optional)

Step 2: Toast Your Spices

Some recipes suggest toasting certain spices before including them in the mixture. Cardamom pods must at least be husked to obtain the seeds before use, if not toasted. You may also want to bake the other seeds you intend to use or toast them in a saucepan. You can also dry roast your chili peppers.

1. To bake: 1. Preheat oven to 350. 2. Put seeds and cardamom pods in an oven-safe container. 3. Bake seeds for up to 7 minutes. 2. To dry roast: 1. Put seeds and cardamom pods in a pan. 2. Heat on medium burner, stirring to prevent scorching, until well toasted.

Step 3: Create a Base

Once you've toasted any spices you choose, you can begin composing your curry powder. Start by including the most common ingredients.

1. Start with a tablespoon each of coriander, cumin, and turmeric, as well as 1/2 tablespoon of fenugreek. 2. Add a couple teaspoons each of dry mustard or mustard seeds and ground pepper. Many recipes call for red chili pepper flakes, while others use ground white or black pepper. 3. If you know what optional spices you want to include in your powder, add them now. Some typical additions include: 1. 1/2 teaspoon cardamom 2. 1/2 tablespoon fennel seeds 3. 2 teaspoons ginger 4. 1/2 teaspoon cloves 4. Variations on curry powder less commonly call for: 1. 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds 2. 1 teaspoon cinnamon 3. 1 teaspoon mace

Tip: Once you've completed your base, you have a curry mixture. You can stop here if you're satisfied with the results. Simply grind the mixture into a powder before using it.

Step 4: Grind Your Spices

If you aren't using pre-ground spices, you'll need to grind your spices to create a powder. Use one of the following items to do so. Make sure that whatever instrument you use effectively grinds the hard seed shells. Coffee Grinder or Spice Grinder or Blender or Mortar and Pestle

1. 2. 3. 4.

Step 5: Adjust Your Mixture

Compare your mixture to a curry powder that you've tried and liked. Hopefully, you'll like your own mixture at least equally well. If not, try to determine what the commercial mixture has that you like and your mixture lacks.

1. Consult a reference such as McCormick's Enspicelopedia for the properties of different spices. 2. Smell and taste different spices singly to decide if you want to add more of them to your mixture. 3. If your mixture isn't spicy enough, try adding some more pepper or ginger. 4. If you want a sweeter mixture, try adding ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, or fennel.

5. To make your powder more yellow, try adding turmeric, cumin, or mustard. 6. You can always add more of the base ingredients as well.

Step 6: Use Your Curry Powder

Once you've created the perfect curry mixture, it's time to put it to use in a delicious recipe.

Curry Recipes

Epicurious: Curry Cumin Popovers Food & Wine: Aromatic Yellow Curry Sauce FoodNetwork.com: Singapore Pork Satay with Lemon-Curry Rice Martha Stewart: Chicken Curry PBS: Julia Child's Curry of Spinach and Eggplant

Conclusion

Once you've made your first curry mixture, you can make different curries for different recipes. Perhaps you find certain spices work best when currying lamb, while others are perfect for curried chicken. Keep your curry mixture, either in powder form or un-ground, in an airtight jar. Your unground mixture should stay fresh for 6 months, while your ground powder will only last for two.

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The Curry Tree or Kadipatta or Sweet Neem leaf (Murraya koenigii ) is a tropical to sub-tropical tree in the family Rutaceae, which is native to India. It is a small tree, growing 4-6 m tall, with a trunk up to 40 cm diameter. The leaves are pinnate, with 11-21 leaflets, each leaflet 2-4 cm long and 1-2 cm broad. The flowers are small white, and fragrant. The small black, shiny berries are edible, but their seeds are poisonous. Its leaves are highly aromatic and are used as a herb. Their form is small and narrow and they somewhat resemble the leaves of the Neem tree; In Tamil and Malayalam it is known as Karuveppilai, ilai meaning leaves and veppilai meaning Neem leaf. Other names include Kari Patta (Hindi), noroxingha (Assamese), Bhursunga Patra (Oriya), Kadhi Patta (Marathi),

Mithho Limdo (Gujarati) and Karapincha (Sinhalese). Kariveppilai podi is very popular in Tamil Nadu. They are commonly used as seasoning in Indian and Sri Lankan cooking, much like bay leaves and especially in curries with fish or coconut milk. In their fresh form, they have a short shelf life though they may be stored in a freezer for quite some time,though they lose much of flavour. They are also available dried, though the aroma is inferior. Curry leaves are an essential ingredient in South Indian dishes.

Curry leaf is used in South Asian traditional medicine to treat the digestive system, skin conditions and diabetes. Its antidiabetic properties are supported by scientific research.

Curry leaves possess the qualities of a herbal tonic. They strengthen the functions of stomach and promote its action. They are also used as a mild laxative. The leaves may be taken mixed with other mild tasting herbs. The juice extracted from 15 grams of leaves may be taken with buttermilk.

Digestive Disorders Fresh juice of curry leaves, with lime juice and sugar, is an effective medicine in the treatment of morning sickness, nausea and vomiting due to indigestion and excessive use of fats. One or two teaspoons of juice of these leaves mixed with a teaspoon of lime juice may be taken in these conditions. The curry leaves, ground to a fine paste and mixed with buttermilk, can also be taken on an empty stomach with beneficial results in case of stomach upsets.

Tender curry leaves are useful in diarrhoea, dysentery and piles. They should be taken, mixed with honey. The bark of the tree is also useful in bilious vomiting. A teaspoon of the powder or the decoction of the dry bark should be given with cold water in this condition.

Diabetes Eating 10 fresh fully grown curry leaves every morning for three months is said to prevent diabetes due to heredity factors. It also cures diabetes due to obesity, as the leaves have weight reducing properties. As the weight drops, the diabetic patients stop passing sugar in urine. Kidney Disorders The root of the curry plant also has medicinal properties. The juice of the root can be taken to relieve pain associated with the kidneys.

The leaves can be used in the form of chutney or the juice may be squeezed and taken inbuttermilk or lassi.

Bums and Bruises Curry leaves can be effectively used to treat burns, bruises and skin eruptions. They should be applied as a poultice over the affected areas.

Insect Bites Fruits of the tree, which are berries, are edible. They are green when raw, but purple when ripe. Juice of these berries mixed

with equal proportion of lime-juice, is an effective fluid for external application in insect stings and bites of poisonous creatures.

Hair Tonic: When the leaves are boiled in coconut oil Ii they are reduced to a blackened residue, the oil forms excellent hair tonic to stimulate hair growth and in retaining the natural pigmentation. Curry leaves have been used for centuries in South India and natural flavouring agent in sambar, rasam curries and non vegetarian dishes . Chutney can be made by mixing the leaves with coriander leaves, coconut scrapings and tomatoes. Curry leaves are main ingredients in seasoning. The leaves, bark and the root of the curry plant are use in indigenous medicine as a tonic, stimulant and antiflatulent.