Monday, May 25, 2009

Authentic Homemade Indian - Sri Lankan Curry Powder


The great thing about meeting people who share the same passion as you, specifically as in eating good food and cooking, is that you create this special bond because you have that common interest that means so much in your every day life. At least, this is the way I see it. I just met one of my colleague's wife who just absolutely loves cooking and happened to have become a loyal reader of my blog thanks to her hubby Mayur. Mayur is an avid photographer who takes phenomenal pictures of just about anything, without the expensive SLR. With a very simple camera, he takes fabulous shots from all different angles and great composition. I think the latter is key to great photography. And as he stumbled upon my blog via Facebook he complimented my macro shots of the dishes I prepare for QlinArt and forwarded my blog to his beloved Bhavya. Quickly, Bhavya and I became friends and started sharing stories over lunch outings and decided to keep in touch to further explore our culinary delights together. Friends like these are difficult to find, but so worth the wait.

One (and I do mean, one of the gifts... as Bhavya and Mayur are one of the few giving and generous people I have ever met)of the magnificient gifts I received from them is an authentic and wonderfully fragranced Indian curry powder made in India by Bhavya's mother. Unfortunately, I do not have the exact quantities of each ingredient, but they tell me that with practice and experience, one will reach the desired texture and taste. I have a feeling that they just want to keep the recipe as a family secret. ;)


In case you feel adventurous and are not afraid of experimenting, feel free to try it out and let me know of the outcome!
I already have a good batch which I've been using in almost all of my spicy dishes! So, I'll be experimenting later...or probably bribe them in giving out the secret recipe.

In my friends' native language it's called kharada pudi. It's a complex blend of the ingredients. Usually, they need their mothers' help to make this good of a curry powder.This one doesn't have chillis. I've been warned though to be extremely specific about quantities. This homemade curry powder is an Indian blend specifically from Mysore, a region of Karnataka in India.

The ingredients are dried in the sun for a day then dry roasted and then will be taken to the flour mill.


The ingredients are as follows :


Fenugreek seeds

Curry leaves

Raw rice

Raw turmeric

Cumin seeds

Coriander seeds

Horse gram

Asfoetida

Toor dal

Bengal gram dal

Roasted Bengal gram

Urad dal

Mustard seeds


Enjoy and have fun!


2 comments:

  1. Awww....Thank you :):)

    Lol at keeping the quantities secret :)...Nah..will ask momma or take you to India and we shall make only curry powder :)

    Glad you like it that much..

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  2. I make my own Sri Lankan curry powder based on a family recipe (which is actually in my cookbook, Rice&Curry: Sri Lankan Home Cooking). I also sell it online at Foodzie.com. The crucial difference that sets Sri Lankan curry powder apart from the rest is the fact that all the individual ingredients are dry-roasted before being ground and mixed together creating a very unique, nutty flavor. I invite you to check out my blog at www.riceandcurry.wordpress.com

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