Easy homemade curry powder recipe

‘Curry’ is a word used multiple times in the culinary world and has become synonymous with Indian food.

But what does Curry actually mean?

Interestingly ‘curry’ and ‘curry powder’ are NOT originally from India!! 

There are different meanings and types of the word ‘curry’ which has been explained here. 

A curry spice mix  became commercially popular post the colonisation of India to make Indian flavours easily attainable at home. 

In this post you will see how easy it is to make a DIY curry mix at home with spices that you can find in most supermarkets. 

What is Curry Powder?

It is a common believe that Indian curry powder is largely used in Indian food, but in actual fact, it is not true.

Indians like to use different types of individual spices in their ‘curries’.

Adding different spices gives them the flexibility and control of the type and amount of spices to use to make a dish.

Curry powder spice mix is essentially simplifying the process of individual mixing by pre-blending the most popular Indian spices together.

It is one of those pre-blended Indian spice mixes that make cooking Indian food relatively easy for beginners.

What Spices Are In Curry Powder?

Like any blend of spices, there is no set recipe for making curry spice blend.

The types of spices used will vary and depend on the commercial brands you buy Indian curry powder from.

If it’s a homemade curry powder blend then the mix of spices will depend on family or regional recipes.

You may have heard of ‘Madras curry powder’. Madras, (renamed as Chennai) is an Indian city in the South of the Indian subcontinent.

The spices used in a ‘Madras curry powder’, is different from a normal curry powder spice blend.

Another thing to remember is to know the difference between Curry powder and Garam Masala Powder. 

I have seen many people get confused between these two common Indian spice blends and use it in a completely wrong way when it comes to cooking.

They are two different spices, using different spice ratios and used in different ways for cooking. So please do get that right.

What Are The Common Curry Powder Ingredients?

As mentioned before, the likelihood of a set spice blend recipe is very rare.

The same applies to homemade curry seasoning recipe. There is no set ingredient list for making curry powder.

Each commercially bought curry powder blend has different constituents of spices as well as quantity!

However, there are few ingredients that are a must-have for making a curry powder at home.

One of the biggest advantages of making DIY curry powder at home is that you can include some of the best healthiest spices that help to naturally boost your immune system. 

A curry powder spice blend will essentially include more base or sweet spices to make the primary taste mild.

These base spices are cumin seeds, coriander seeds, turmeric, the hot spices are black pepper and red chili powder. While the sweet and pungent spices include cloves and cinnamon.

A basic curry powder ingredient that almost all Indian curry powder blends have are:

• cumin powder
• coriander powder
• turmeric Powder
• chilli powder

In addition to this, curry powder masala spice blends can include any or many of the below spices:

• cardamom
• ginger powder
• cinnamon
• nutmeg
• mustard 
• fenugreek
• black pepper
• fennel
• bay leaf
• black cardamom
• cloves

The type of spices and quantity of spices used to make a curry masala spice blend is varied and brand dependent.

If you are looking for the best curry powder mix then you may have to try a few combinations or brands and settle for the one you find best.

Tips to Make Curry Powder At Home

Since there is no set recipe for making curry powder at home, you have the flexibility to add different spices to your blend.

These tips will help you in making the best curry powder blend that suits your taste and your dietary needs.

• It is not always a necessity to add all spices listed in the spice blend recipe as long as you have the basic once.
• Specific ingredients such as fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds add additional flavour to the mix.
• I suggest experimenting with different quantity of spices that you use.
• My personal preference is to use more coriander than cumin as coriander has a lovely citrusy flavour and makes the blend less strong giving it a wider scope of use in making other dishes.
• You could choose to either keep the quantity same or increase cumin to coriander.

How To Make Curry Powder

There are many different homemade curry powder recipes.

The choice of spices and its quantitative measurement depends on your personal preference.

I make different combinations of curry powders and experiment with their taste. Some prove to be better than others.

This particular recipe is the one I make with limited spices in hand. Oh yes, 10 spices are limited for an Indian kitchen 🙂 !!

The DIY Curry recipe is just a guide on how you could make fresh curry powder at home. So please do feel free to make your versions by choosing few spices from the recipe below:

Spices Used:

• Cumin seeds – 2 tbsp
• Coriander seeds – 3 tbsp
• Black peppercorn- 10
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Cinnamon – 1/2 inch stick
• Cardamon – 3 pods
• Cloves – 5
• Turmeric powder – 2 tbsp
• Chilli powder/ whole chillies – 2 – 3 tsp or whole
• Bay Leaves

Method:

1. Heat pan, add all the whole spices that are cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cardamom, cloves, black peppercorn, mustard seeds, cinnamon, bay leaves and whole chillies and lightly roast it for about 1 minute.

2. Remove from heat once the seeds start to emit fragrance.

3. Cool and grind into powder.

4. Now add the powdered spices that is turmeric powder and chilli powder ( if not using whole chillies) to the roast, ground spices and mix the spices well together.

5. Store the spice blend in an airtight jar and keep away from sunlight.

6. Homemade curry powder will last for 4 months.

A freshly blended homemade curry powder will keep well and flavourful for up to 4 months.

Refer to this chart for optimum shelf life of spices and keep your spices fresh.

Make sure that you store curry powder in an airtight container and keep away from direct light.

Enjoy making different recipes and curries with your own DIY curry powder!!

You can start with this easy 30 minutes Chicken curry made with just 7 ingredients.