When I was a kid I was always confused by the word “curry” because my non-Indian friends used it in a way that didn’t make any sense to me. They called everything from a dry potato saute with spices, to soupy lentils, to chicken in a cream sauce “curry.”

Indians usually only use the word “curry” when they are speaking English and then only when referring to something with a sauce or gravy, rather than a spice.

Curry is a word invented by the British back when they ruled India. It is the anglicized version of the Tamil word kari, meaning sauce and is now commonly used to describe almost any food of South Asian origin.

Spooning out some garam masala

I used to get really upset when people would use the word “curry”. I would insist that foods be called by their proper names because there is no such thing as curry in Indian food and that curries are a British invention.

Over the years as I’ve introduced more and more friends to Indian food, and translated the traditional Indian names into English, I’ve found myself using the word “curry” more and more. It is useful as an English translation for the word masala (meaning a mix of spices).

It just made more sense to people new to Indian food. I no longer get upset about the term, but embrace it instead. The word curry invokes an image of warm, spicy, delicious food. And since language is ever changing, I’m okay with accepting the word into my vocabulary.

How to make Garam Masala from scratch by Indiaphile.info
Garam masala in front of a masala dhaba.

I’ve found that most people who are new to Indian food use the word curry as they are learning about the cuisine but switch to the authentic names of foods as they become more familiar with it. What more can I ask for?

Indian spice merchants are said to have invented the well known curry powder for British colonial personnel returning to Britain. The closest thing to the store bought “curry powder” that is commonly used in the Indian kitchen is the garam masala. There are many other spice mixtures available in Indian (and Indian stores) that can also be called curry powder, but if you have to guess what someone means by curry powder, garam masala is a safe bet. 

Bowl of garam masala

Garam means warm or hot, and masala means a mixture of spices. This spice mixture is not about spicy heat from chili but more about the warmth and complexity created by blending various spices. There is no set recipe for a garam masala, it varies greatly depending on region and personal preference.

My mom doesn’t use garam masala. She likes to just use a blend of half cumin and half coriander seed powder and add in other dry spices and fresh ingredients like ginger, garlic and cilantro as she cooks.

So when I set about trying to find a garam masala I didn’t have an old family recipe to refer to. I experimented a lot. I started with store bought versions but was never happy with them. Then I started blending my own.

Cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper and cloves are the backbone of most garam masalas. So I started with a basic version with just a few spices. That first batch was okay, better than store bought but I wasn’t completely happy. Over the last couple years, I’ve worked out a recipe that I really like. I like to throw in a lot of different spices because I like the complexity. I’ll probably still keep fiddling with it, because that’s me! But here’s my current recipe. Feel free to experiment with your own set of spices.

How to make Garam Masala from scratch by Indiaphile.info

Garam Masala

Author avatar
By Puja
5.00 from 5 votes

A versatile spice mixture used in many Indian dishes, garam masala is known to some as "curry"

Garam Masala
Prep Time55 minutes
Cook Time55 minutes
Total Time1010 minutes
CourseSpice Mixtures
CuisineIndian
Servings40
Calories4 kcal
5.00 from 5 votes
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Ingredients

Scale:
  • 3 Tbsp cumin seeds
  • 3 Tbsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tsp cardamom seeds (remove the green shell and use just the black seeds)
  • 1 Tbsp black peppercorns
  • 1 tsp cloves
  • 2 inch piece of cinnamon stick
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 star anise
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 mace
  • 1 dried red chilies ((optional))

Instructions

  1. Toss all the spices onto a dry pan and heat over medium heat. Stir often.
  2. Heat until you start to smell the aroma of the spices and they start to turn golden brown about 5 minutes. Watch very carefully that the spices don’t burn. Constant stirring is important.
  3. Once the spices are toasted, separate out the nutmeg. Use a microplane or fine grinder to grate the nutmeg. (You can toss it into the spice grinder but every time I do, it makes so much noise that I’m afraid my grinder will break so I just grate the nutmeg separately and add it in later).
  4. Grind the the rest of the spices using either a spice grinder, clean coffee grinder or morter and pestle.
  5. Add in the grated nutmeg. Mix well.

Notes:

Garam masalas vary extensively, if you do not have all of the ingredients, you can leave some out and still have an authentic garam masala. Any combination of star anise, mace, and fennel seed can be left out for a simpler garam masala.

Until recently, I’ve always included dried red chili in my garam masala. Today, I tend to leave it out to better control the heat of my recipes to suit the tastes of my young child.


Video

Calories:4kcal
Sodium:1mg
Potassium:17mg
Vitamin A:10IU
Vitamin C:0.1mg
Calcium:10mg
Iron:0.5mg
  • charlotte's avatar

    charlotte

    My favourite is when people go to Indian restaurants and order “chai tea, please”.

    • Steve Thomas-Patel's avatar

      Steve Thomas-Patel

      Or call it an “atm machine”

      • Kris's avatar

        Kris

        or “two twins”

  • Shruti@PartTimeChef's avatar

    Shruti@PartTimeChef

    Ha ha .. Good write up. Enjoyed reading it.

  • Catherine Robey's avatar

    Catherine Robey

    Thank you for sharing your recipe ~ I have struggled to find a decent Garam Masala. I made my own but overdid the cloves…..do you think I can just double up on the other ingredients so that the cloves are not so overpowering, or just start from scratch again?

    • Puja Thomas-Patel's avatar

      Puja Thomas-Patel

      Hi Catherine,
      Absolutely! You could simply double the other ingredients. You could also play around with the flavors by just adding a little more of cumin or coriander.

  • strangeromance's avatar

    strangeromance

    Don’t get offended, be grateful that someone is open to other cultures 🙂 I’ve seen plenty of resistance to anything foreign in the U.S. and Europe. England has probably been the place most open to integration despite it’s long history of bringing its own idea of “civilisation” to the rest of the world (not only India) and it can appreciate Indian cuisine better than anyone outside of Asia; even if gravy just so happens to be their favourite part of the meal. Eating a falafel there would send you running to the nearest “curry” vendor – trust me. You wouldn’t believe some of the Indian cuisine I’ve actually spent money on in Germany! And just think what Italians have to put up with when they discover the Indian pizza culture! So, no cause for getting upset. Plenty gets lost in translation and people just look for the best way to communicate by creating avenues in the best way that they can, even if they have to simplify words or bend their meaning. Peace.

  • Biplab Poddar's avatar

    Biplab Poddar

    Thank you for sharing the recipe of Garam masala. In India there are various forms of garam masala , it varies from region to region and the flavours are also different.

  • V.'s avatar

    V.

    Yeah. The first time I heard about it, I was like wtf is curry powder. And I’m as Indian as Indian can be.
    Also, Garam Masala under the brand name MDH is pretty close to homemade versions, so if someone’s feeling a little lazy…

  • ColdFusion's avatar

    ColdFusion

    Alright, so kari means sauce.. shouldn’t it be a normal thing to bring up in indian cuisine then, not “only used when speaking english” ? It sounds like most of the time we’re saying curry we should be saying masala, because we’re trying to say “a food with a bunch of indian spices in it”

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