Curry Powder

What is a Curry Powder?

Did you know that the term Curry Powder is a Western invention?

Curry powder is nothing but a mixture of various spices that vary in their composition. Curry powder, and the contemporary English use of the word Curry are Western inventions and do not reflect any specific Indian food, though a similar mixture of spices used in north India is called garam masala (recipe given below). Curry powder actually resemble to the south Indian sambar powder. The word curry is widely believed to be a corruption of the Tamil word kari, variously meaning something like sauce, cooked vegetables or meat.

In the western world, curry powder mixtures tend to have a fairly standardized taste; though a great variety of spice mixtures are used in Indian cuisine.

Curry powder was largely popularized during the nineteenth and twentieth century through the mass export of the condiment to the western table, throughout Europe and North and South America and through its use in British Army rations. Curry powder did not become standardized, as many of the original blends of curry powder were still available throughout the world. During late 60’s and early 70’s consumption of Indian food in the west increased and this led to an increased demand for Indian restaurants throughout the world. The tradition of keeping special blends of curry powder simply became uneconomical, and curry powder became increasingly standardized outside India.

Most recipes and producers of curry powder usually include coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dry fenugreek leaves, and red chilies in their blends. Depending on the recipe, additional ingredients such as ginger, garlic, asafoetida, fennel seed, caraway seeds (sometimes called lovage seeds), cinnamon, clove, mustard seed, green cardamom, black cardamom, nutmeg, and black pepper may also be added. However, the Portuguese importation of the chili pepper from Brazil and their mixing of other Asian spices enabled the development of ‘curi’. A dish called Vindaloo from Goa, is a actually a word derived from the Portuguese word Vinho de alho ; which means garlic wine.

As we learnt curry powder is more of a generic term for a blend of different spices and is commonly known as garam masala in India. Garam masala is best made fresh just before you begin cooking, but if you haven’t got the patience and time, make a batch ahead and store for several months in an air-tight container in a cool, dark place.

To make your own curry powder/ garam masala, you would need:

• 4 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 ½ tsp black cumin seeds (shahjeera)
• 1 tbsp black peppercorns
• 1 ½ tsp dry ginger
• 4 large black cardamom
• 6-7 cloves
• ¾ tsp cinnamon (2 X 1” pieces)

Simply dry roast all the spices in a skillet and dry grind them in a grinder. And, store in a cool dry place in an air tight container.