Garam Masala is the heart of Indian cooking with its blend of spices that is each Indian family creates in their own way. Sometimes its less spicy, sometimes its just fire. This article is dedicated to the less spicy one which goes perfectly well for people who want to eat it on a regular basis. However, the masala can be made more spicy by adding red chilli powder.
The prepared garam masala in this recipe goes well with most dishes, especially with Kosali (Western Odisha)-style mutton curry.
- Preparation Time: 5 minutes to select the spices
- Cooking Time: 20 minutes, 10 minutes slow roast and 10 minutes cooling
- Total Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Table of Contents
Ingredients
To make 150 grams of Mild Garam Masala.
- 2 Star Anise
- 1/4th of a Nutmeg (Jaayphal)
- 2-4 Bay Leaves (Tej Patta)
- 10 Black Pepper Kernels
- 4 Cloves (Laung)
- 10 Green Cardamom (Ilaichi)
- 3 Black Cardamom (Badi Ilaichi)
- 10 grams of Cumin seeds
- 25 grams of Coriander seeds
- 5 grams of Shah Jeera (black cumin, not Kalonji)
- 10 Grams Khus Khus
- 15 Grams Fennel Seeds (Saunf)
- 2-3 Grams Patthar ke Phool
- 15 Grams Poppy Seeds (Khus Khus)
- 10 Grams Rose Petals
Note: We are not using red chillies or more peppercorns to reduce the heat that goes into the masala. If you want more heat, you can add the later as per your tolerance level.
Preparation
- Mix all the masala in the list except for Saunf, Poppy Seeds, Nutmeg and Rose Petals.
- Pre-heat a kadhai or wok till its medium hot.
- Add the masala mix and keep stirring or else cumin seeds will burn and spoil the whole mix.
- Roast till the colour of coriander grains lose their colour. This will happen between 10-15 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and add the masalas mentioned in step 1 and keep stirring the kadhai.
- After 5 more minutes, transfer them to a wide plate. Do not keep them in kadhai, otherwise they will get dark roasted and we will lose all the essential oils within the spices.
- Grind them in a jar which has zero moisture.
#NOTE: Do not grind them for too long otherwise, the heat from the grinder will spoil the taste.
