What is Garam Masala?

What Makes Garam Masala?

Garam Masala is a blend of spices popularly used in Indian cuisine.There is no standard recipe because it varies according to the cook’s taste, and regions, but the common ingredients may include the following whole spices: black peppercorns, nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, cloves, black and green cardamom, Indian bayleaf, cumin and coriander.

The word Garam means’ hot’ and the word masala means ‘a blend of spices’, however Garam Masala is not really a hot spice.

How is Garam Masala Made?

The spices are usually lightly roasted, just before cooking begins, and ground into a fine powder. It’s made in small quantities because ground spices lose their potency when stored for long periods of time.

You can also buy prepared Garam Masala from certain supermarkets, but it’s better to prepare your own, in small quantities. My store-bought Garam Masala has the following ingredients: coriander, cumin, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, black peppercorn, and star anise.

Because the spices are not raw, garam masala may be added to dishes in the final stages of cooking or sprinkled over as a final seasoning before serving the food, to infuse fragrance. It can also be sprinkled over food after serving on a platter. There are also recipes that call for it at the beginning of cooking. It depends on the cook.

I have seen some recipes that don’t call for roasting of the whole spices, but I personally prefer to roast the whole spices before grinding because I also use it at the end of cooking.

myfavouritepastime.com Last Updated: August 05, 2019