Curry Powder

This is a curry powder i learnt from one of our Telugu acquaintance 5 yrs back while we were in the US. We had been for dinner at their place and the hostess made a french cut bean curry in a jiffy. All she had to do was empty a pack of frozen french cut bean on a tawa, with tadka of 1 tbsp oil and mustard, and add 2 tbsp of this powder to it....oh, what an amazing taste it had! Still remember the bean curry and the fresh taste of the powder...it had become an obsession for me and my hubby and this has become a regular in our menu over the years....

Ingredients:

4 tbsp Coriander seeds

2 tbsp Urad dhal

2 tbsp Channa dhal (Kadalai paruppu)

1 tbsp Cumin seed ( Jeera)

3 medium Red Chillies

1 tsp Fenugreek seeds ( Methi/Vendhayam)

1 tsp Khus-Khus ( Poppy seeds)

1/4 tsp Asafoetida ( Hing)

Roast the above in tsp of cooking oil and grind coarsely on cooling. This powder can be used to spice up any dry curry like beans, avaraikai, snake guard, raw plantain etc

Masala Powder- The North Indian way

Have you always wondered what makes the North Indian delicacies have that special tinge to it! No matter how much you try, you do not hit that note in the curries you prepare...well, here is something you might want to give a shot at....try this easy to prepare masala powder and garnish your dishes with a fresh teaspoon for that lingering flavour.....

Almost all of the ingredients to this masala powder are easily available in our local provision stores these days...so, take that quick walk to your nearby store and grab all that you need to surprise yourself and all at home....!

Ingredients:

Cloves - 3 nos

Pepper - 6 nos

Cinnamon - 3 sticks

Cardamom - 3 nos

Big Cardamom - 1 no ( preferably use only the seeds)

Bay leaf - 3 nos

Big Jeera - 1/2 tsp

Coriander seeds - 1/2 cup

Red Chilli - 2 nos ( you could use kashmiri chilly if you have them)

Khus Khus - 1 tsp

Saunf - 2 tsp

Preparation: Grind all the above and use fresh!