Curry/Sambar Powder

A secret ingredient ! My MIL’s Sambar/Curry powder is the correct concoction /proportion of ingredients in the right ratio, I would say ! I always wonder how her recipes are sooo tasty ! She just uses her “Curry powder” as her magical wand.

This is a versatile powder used in all her curries, vegetables & of course sambar. Sambar and any veg/non-veg dish cooked with this powder will be phenomenal. If I have this powder at hand, I can manage any number of guests 😉She(Mrs.Gandhimathi Murugan) grinds curry leaves to chutneys, idli podi and this kulambu(gravy) podi as we have ppl around who discard curry leaves on the first sight! Turmeric and salt are added as natural preservatives.

Usually, dhal will be added to sambar powders to thicken the gravy. But, my MIL avoids it as dhal when added would lessen the flavor of other spices. This is a must try curry powder or Kulambu Milagaai thool and I bet you would love it !

My mom abandoned her curry powder recipe which she was following for 30+ years and switched over to this powder once she tasted sambar and chicken gravies prepared using this! Its really damn good .. So, worth trying .. I am posting this recipe today as my future recipes will be based on this masala powder.

Preparation

1. In a dry pan under medium flame, fry cumin, pepper and fenugreek , separately until browned. Keep stirring so that it is evenly fried. Make sure not to burn it. Slight browning will suffice.2.Wash curry leaves, drain the water and dry it in a soft cotton towel under fan for 15 minutes. Fry it in pan until it loses all moisture. The green should just fade but not change to brown/black/grey color.

3.Fry coriander seeds(in batches) until nice aroma is released. Do not burn it. Stir continuously and switch off when it is browned.

4.Fry red chillies. Do not wait for color change. Just stir continuously and make sure all chillies are heated up.5. Fry red chillies in batches and for every batch, add little rock salt to avoid coughing. Salt is mandatory as it also acts as a preservative.

6.Fry Turmeric sticks until it gets dark brown spots in the embossed parts. Cool down and take each stick in a mortar. 7.Hit continuously using pestle and break it into pieces.

8.Dry all ingredients in scorching sun until red chillies break easily in a single try and no more pulling to break the chillies. That is the right consistency to end drying.9.Once dried, grind in mill immediately. Bring home and spread in a wide plate and let it cool down completely. Transfer to air-tight container and the “Taste Maker” is ready 🙂

Tips/Tricks

• After drying in sun, do not just keep it in home over-night and take it to mill in the morning. If you plan to take it to mill next day, again expose it to sun for 2-3 hours and then take it to mill for good result.
• After grinding in the mill, keep it loosely covered on the way back to home. If you close it tightly, it would sweat!
• Just take the powder required for a month in a container and grab it for daily use. Store the rest in another container, so that it is not exposed to air frequently. Shelf life is 6 months.