Zero Chili Curry Powder

However much we master our cooking, Mom’s food is very special, and we often crave for Mom’s food. I don’t know, whether it’s her love or a secret recipe she’s yet to share with me, that makes her food so special.

I attribute reasons to be her love and purity she practices. Let me give you a brief background. My mom is a converted vegetarian. All of us started practicing vegetarianism, when we were introduced to meditation by Brahma Kumaris. She strictly practices ‘Purity’; she only takes food cooked with God’s remembrance and doesn’t take onion and garlic. Hinduism promotes Saatvic food i.e. vegetarian food but avoiding certain type of vegetables. Onion and garlic is believed to be increasing impure feelings.

Whatever she cooks at home she will offer it to God, before serving to family. Hence it could be her love, pure feeling and on top of it, God’s love that make’s mom’s food so special.

I always bring something along with me from home, something that I could cook and bring mom’s food taste into my dishes. Curry powder is a wonderful ingredient to bring back from Mom’s kitchen. Her curry powder is influenced by Sri Lankan Tamil (Northern) origins, but with some modifications. She only consumes very little chili (unlike me), again it is believed to be increasing heat and anger in oneself.

This curry powder has zero chili and has protein from Soya, yellow split peas, orid dhal and toor dhal. It also has rice. Adding these legumes and rice helps to give tanginess to gravies made with this curry powder. Gravy will be much thicker and tastier. So here you go…. secret recipe for my mom’s curry powder.

Print recipe here
Ingredients to make 500g Curry Powder

250g Coriander Seeds

50g Cummin Seeds

50g Fennel Seeds

50g Black peppercorns

50g Soya Seeds

50g Toor Dhal (split pigeon peas)

50g yellow split peas

50g Orid Dhal

1 tbsp Fenugreek seeds

1 tbsp turmeric powder

1 Large cinnamon stick

50g White parboiled rice

Method

In a large wok dry roast each ingredient separately till aromatic. Time differs according to each ingredient.

Please note orid dhal, soya and rice have to be roasted till golden brown.

Grind to powder using dry grinder. To get fine powder, sieve ground powder and re-grind remaining coarse pieces.

Spread ground curry powder and leave it to cool down. Afterwards pack them in dry and air tight container. You can use this curry powder to make gravy curries and to season stir-fries.

I also bring back curd chilies from home. These are green chilies marinated in yoghurt and salt and sun dried till they are crispy. These can be stored in air tight container for months. These are fried, served as a side with rice and curry meal along with crunchy wafers called “Papadams”. When curd chilies are fried it has crunchy salty taste, with mild hot taste.

Sneak a peak into our Kandy home garden. In our backyard we have mango tree, banana tree, coconut tree, avocado tree, jack fruit tree, Guava Tree, cassava tree, lemon tree, coffee beans, ginger plant, Thavasi Murungai Tree(Leaves are used to make stir-fry) and lot’s passion fruits. Yes it’s a small garden with fruits, vegetables and flowers.

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