Versatile Homemade Curry Spice Blend Recipe
This versatile homemade curry spice blend is built on garam masala with turmeric and cumin, supported with heat from cayenne and black pepper, and my signature hack of aromatic powders ginger and garlic. Amazingly, it works well across global curry styles such as Indian and Japanese. With a couple of tweaks, it can be customized for Thai and Jamaican curries as well.
Servings: 13.5 Tbsp
Calories: 7kcal
Ingredients
All spices are ground powders (except for optional cumin seeds)
- 2 tbsp garam masala see notes for sub
- 3 tsp cumin 2 tsp ground, 1 tsp seeds see notes
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp garlic powder sub dried granules
- 1 tsp ginger powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
Instructions
- Simply mix all ingredients (including the 1 tsp whole cumin seeds) together to make approximately 1/3 cup of mix. My turkey curry uses 2 tbsp per recipe, which I would say is pretty standard for any recipe you want to use this mix in that serves 4.
- If you truly love a medium to spicy curry, I recommend doubling the cayenne and black pepper. Those two flavors together form a classic kind of heat one gets from a spicy curry.
Notes
Garam Masala: this store bought blend includes cumin, coriander, cardamom, black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and saffron. It adds warming flavor notes to curries.
Garam Masala sub: if for some reason, you aren't able to buy this blend, note that there is some crossover with the other ingredients, so some will already be present in the recipe. Add a tsp ea of coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, or cloves to increase the warming/floral notes to the blend if you cannot get Garam Masala.
Cumin: 1 of the 3 tsps is designated to be in seed form, not ground. This is a Sofa Dinners adaptation, because I like their unique flavor and crunch. This is entirely optional and you can use all ground cumin if you prefer.
Fenugreek: many (most) curry blends include fenugreek seeds, ground. I do not include them because they can be harder to find and impart quite a bitter taste (although some say it is a signature flavor in curries). See post notes above for more on fenugreek.
Turmeric: this spice has a strong golden tone that will come off if you touch it or sprinkle it on your clothes by mistake. It will wash off, but better to be careful as it does not wash off your skin that easily or quickly!
Nutrition
Calories: 7kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 0.3g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 21mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 0.03g | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.5mg | Magnesium: 3mg | Net Carbohydrates: 1g