Chole Masala Powder , How To Make Chole Masala Powder
by Tarla Dalal
chole masala powder recipe | homemade chole masala powder | with 22 amazing images.
There is joy, freshness in making your own chole masala powder recipe. The aroma and flavour you get from homemade chole masala powder beats the chole masala powder packet you buy from the store.
Indeed, a freshly-ground batch of chole masala powder will beat any commercial brand hands down. This is because homemade chole masala powder is pure, free of adulteration, fresh and made with love!
They have a strong aroma and intense flavour, and just a sprinkling is enough to boost your dish. This recipe shows you how to make the perfect Dry Chole Masala Powder at home. You can make a small or medium batch, depending on how frequently you use it.
We have pan roasted the ingredients in chole masala powder, because that is the fastest and most convenient way. However, if you have time, you can toast the ingredients in the oven, or sun dry them for two days. Also, take care to sort the ingredients carefully to remove impurities like small stones, dirt and husk.
We have started by dry roasting kashmiri red chilies, cinnamon black cardamom and bay leaves and set aside. further, in the same pan, we have add the cumin seeds, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, carom seeds, cloves, pomegranate seeds and black peppercorns. Dry roast them on a medium flame for 2 minutes or till they change their color. Transfer to a plate and keep aside to cool. Mix together all the dry roasted ingredients and blend in a mixer till smooth. Put mixture in a bowl and add the nutmeg, dried mango powder, mace powder, asafoetida, black salt and salt. Mix well, cool and store chole masala powder in an air-tight container.
We suggest you follow the chole masala powder recipe exactly because a little more less of any ingredient tends to change the flavour. In fact, we learnt this the tough way – on our first attempt we added more of dalchini and the flavour was too overpowering. Now we got it perfectly right – and so will you!
When mixed with kabuli chana (chick peas) to make the ever popular North Indian Chole Bhature or for other innovative dishes like Chole Samosa Chaat , Chole Tikki Chaat , this homemade chole masala powder recipe will add the punch required to make the dish a sure hit!
The next time you can even try making Garam Masala at home to help you create an array of Indian foods.
Enjoy how to make chole masala powder recipe | homemade chole masala powder | with detailed step by step photos below.
Chole Masala Powder , How To Make Chole Masala Powder
Preparation Time: Cooking Time: Total Time:
Makes 1 cup
For Chole Masala Powder
12-15 whole dry kashmiri red chilli
1 stick cinnamon (dalchini) , approximately 3”
2 black cardamom (badi elaichi)
4 to 6 bayleaves (tejpatta) , depending upon the size
2 tbsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tbsp caraway seeds (shahjeera)
4 tbsp coriander (dhania) seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
1 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)
8 cloves (laung / lavang)
2 tbsp pomegranate seeds (anardana)
1 tsp black peppercorns (kalimirch)
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg (jaiphal)
1/2 tsp dried ginger (soonth) powder
1/2 tsp mace (javantri) powder
1 tsp dried mango powder (amchur)
1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
2 tsp black salt (sanchal)
1 tsp salt
For chole masala powder
- For chole masala powder
- To make the {span class="bold1"}chole masala powder{/span}, take a broad non-stick pan and add the kashmiri dry red chillies to it. The stem of the chillies should be removed and they should be cut into 2 pieces horizontally.
- Now, add the cinnamon, black cardamom and bayleaves. Dry roast them on a medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes or till they turn aromatic. Transfer to a plate and let them cool.
- In the same non-stick pan, add the cumin seeds, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, carom seeds, cloves, pomegranate seeds and black peppercorns. Dry roast them on a medium flame for 2 minutes or till they change their color. Transfer to a plate and keep aside to cool.
- Mix together all the dry roasted ingredients and blend in a mixer till smooth.
- Put mixture in a bowl and add the nutmeg, dried mango powder, mace powder, asafoetida, black salt and salt.
- Mix well with your fingertips for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Store the {span class="bold1"}chole masala powder{/span} in an air-tight container and use as required.
Chole Masala Powder Video
If you like Chole Masala Powder recipe, then try:
- If you like this chole masala powder recipe | homemade chole masala powder | you can try out other masala recipes like:
How to make Chole Masala Powder:
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To make chole masala powder recipe | homemade chole masala powder | first place the chillies on a chopping board. Cut the stem of the chilli. Chop the chillies horizontally into two pieces and remove the seeds. You can also chop them using a pair of scissors.
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Take a broad non stick pan and add the kashmiri dry red chillies to it..
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Add the cinnamon. Cinnamon is the inner bark of a tropical evergreen tree. You have to break a stick into 1” pieces.
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Now, add the black cardamom. It has an astringent aroma, but is not bitter to taste.
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Similarly, add bay leaves. The Indian Bay leaves impart a flavour which is similar to cinnamon, but milder.
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Dry roast on a medium flame for 4-5 minutes till they become fragrant and darkened a little bit. If the bay leaf is smaller in size then you can use more. Ensure that you don’t over roast them to avoid turning them into a darker shade which in return will make dry Chole Masala powder bitter in taste.
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Remove them in a plate and keep aside to cool.
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Take the same non-stick pan and add the cumin seeds into it.
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Now, add the caraway seeds. They are also known as shahjeera and look similar to cumin seed, but are darker in colour.
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Add the coriander seeds. Coriander is one of the oldest of herbs and spices known to mankind.
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Similarly, add the fennel seeds. Also known as saunf, they are pale greenish in colour and have a faintly sweet flavour.
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Add the carom seeds. It belongs to the cumin and parsley family The seeds are tiny, erect and oval-shaped with a sharp and penetrating taste.
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Then, add the cloves. Cloves are the immature and unopended flower buds of a tropical tree and are sweetly pungent in flavour.
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Add the pomegranate seeds. The dried seeds of the pomegranate fruit are called anardana in hindi. Roasted and ground anardana replaces lime juice in the cuisines of regions where fresh lime in not available and also, to make an array of dry spices. It provides a tangy flavour to the Chole Masala powder.
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Finally, add the black peppercorns. Black peppercorn, which is now a common ingredient in our masala dabbas, was once used as a currency by ancient communities to buy and sell goods!
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Dry roast on a medium flame for 2 minutes till they become fragrant and change their color. Do not brown them too much. Remove from the flame and transfer it to a plate. Cool completely.
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Mix together all the dry roasted ingredients.
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Transfer to a mixer jar and blend in a mixer till smooth. Make sure your mixer jar is completely moisture free and dry. Transfer the mixture into a bowl.
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Add the grated nutmeg into the bowl with the roasted and ground spices. A hint of freshly grated nutmeg perks up the homemade Chole masala powder.
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Then, add the dried ginger powder. It is also called as soonth.
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Add the mace powder. Mace is present as the second membrane covering the seed of the nutmeg fruit or the nutmeg. It has a spicy taste, but subtler and more delicate than nutmeg.
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Add the dried mango powder. It is a spice obtained by grinding dried mangoes. It adds mild sourness.
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Similarly, add the asafoetida. It does not have and appealing flavour when raw, but once cooked it changes in nature and imparts a very good aroma to the dishes.
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Furthermore, add the black salt. Black salt is pinkish in colour and is infused with sulfurous herbs and spices.
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Finally, add the salt.
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Mix well using your fingertips for 1 to 2 minutes. Using fingertips help in breaking all the lumps and mix the Chole Masala powder uniformly.
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Store in an air-tight container in a cool and dry place and your Chole masala powder is ready to use. When mixed with kabuli chana (chick peas) to make the ever popular North Indian Chole bhature, or for other innovative dishes like Chole samosa chaat , Punjabi chole tikki chaat, this homemade chole masala recipe will add the punch required to make the dish a sure hit! Also, you can make delectable, innovative snacks like baked chole parcels, potato and methi tikki with chole or paneer tikki aur chole that will surely become very popular amongst your family and friends.
Tips for chole masala powder
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Use Kashmiri red chillies only to get the perfect colour of the chole masala powder.
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Ensure that you don’t over roast them to avoid turning them into a darker shade which in return will make dry Chole Masala powder bitter in taste.
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In the final stage, using fingertips help in breaking all the lumps and mix the chole masala powder uniformly.
Thank you!! Love your recipe instructions. I am really excited make this one with my sister.
Thanks for sharing the recipe, I have tried this it is perfect for chole.
best chole masala powder recipe award goes to this recipe. i shall treasure this for my daughter.
I tried the recipe and it came out really well. I was missing couple of ingredients like black salt and nutmeg but still.
How much whole mace should be used instead of mace powder? I don''t have mace powder.
Chole turned out to be awesome 👌. Also the masala was so bang on....one could smell the mace and nutmeg in every bite. So flavourful!!!
awesome recipie.. loved the powder in my chole . thank you for sharing it
Can i skip caraway seeds as i do not have them..will it make a lot of difference to the taste
I only found powdered anardana, how much would i substitute for the whole seeds?
Edited after original posting.