Freshly ground homemade Garam Masala has an un-matched aroma and flavor that reduces when stored over time. This is a simple tutorial on how -to make and store your own garam masala powder.
Freshly prepared Garam Masala powder – aromatic and flavourful
Garam Masala is the most popular Indian spice blend. It adds a special earthy flavour and a spicy ‘kick’ to regular dishes. I use it when I am cooking heavier gravies like Rajma Masala or paneer curry or pilafs.
While packets of garam masala are easily available in every store, there is something special about homemade garam masala. And when it is freshly prepared, it is the God of all spice mixes — so aromatic and flavourful. The shop bought ones might still have some flavour but they barely have any aroma left. I usually make a batch of almost 250gms in one go and pack them in 50-100g packets. They make great food gifts too.
But life is not perfect and sometimes there is no choice and I have to buy garam masala from market and at those times I try to find an organic blend that is not mass produced and also not prepared months before reaching the shelves.
Not just gravies, just a hint of garam masala will add a twist to your winter bread and cookies too. I wasn’t surprised when I saw recipes of so many baked goodies using the Indian garam masala. It might just be the popular Indian spice mix outside of India too!
The recipe is simple — just roast all the whole spices that go in the garam masala spice mix and grind to a powder. As each spice is roasted separately, it does take a bit of time. Make this aromatic homemade garam masala on one of those days when you have time and patience and are looking to do some pantry stocking.
If you like to make your own spice mixes, please take a moment to rate the recipe below and/ or leave your thoughts. It will really encourage me to keep improving and trying newer things.
How to make Garam Masala Powder at home
Ingredients (1cup = 240ml; 1tbsp = 15ml; 1tsp = 5ml)
- 50 g cumin seeds (~6 tbsp)
- 25 g Black Cardamom (~15 pieces)
- 25 g black peppercorns (~3 tbsp)
- 5-6 Cinnamon sticks , 3” long
- 25 g Green Cardamoms (~4 tbsp)
- 25 g Cloves (~3 tbsp)
- 5 Star Anise
- 10 g Mace (~10 pieces)
- 2 Nutmeg balls
- 8 bayleaves
- 100 g coriander seeds (~1/4 cup)
- 10 g caraway seeds (shahi zeera)(~2tsp)
Instructions
- Dry roast on medium-low heat each of spices separately for 30sec to a minute till you get an aroma.
- Keep aside to cool.
- Once cooled, grind them to a powder and store in an airtight container.
Notes
- The volume measures in ingredients are approximate values.
- Check my glossary of Indian spices for names in English and Hindi.
- The spices are roasted separately because the smaller spices like cloves take little time to roast and the bigger ones like cinnamon sticks or black cardamoms take much longer.
- Nutrition Fact is for 1 tbsp (~9 gms) of garam masala.
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Would love to start a conversation, share recipes, cooking experiences and food stories from India and around the world.
Really good and systematic preparation. You really enjoyed cooking.
It shows your passion for cooking. Is there any tips to make the biryani tastier without adding Ajinomoto (Chinese salt). Your suggestions are most welcome.
Thank you,
Ashok
Thank you, Ashok!
Your feedback encourages me to continue to explore and share more recipes. Regarding Ajinomoto, I don’t use it in any recipe. Ajinomoto also known as MSG has been known to cause various health issues. I use simple whole spices in Biryani like cloves, cinnamon, star anise, and peppers without any readymade spice mix. It tastes good by the way it is cooked on slow heat with yogurt.
Hope that helps,
Ashima
Hi can you help me convert the grams into teaspoon/tablespoon measures? also do each of the 5-6 cinnamon sticks have to be 3″ long?
Hello Megha,
Thank you for your question! I have just updated the recipe for volume measures. Though while I converted by actually measuring each spice and then putting it back using my tbsp measure, the volume measure would still be an approximate (but very close) value because the size of individual spices varies a lot. But it shouldn’t be way off and is pretty close so you can use those measurements.
and yes, in my recipe I use all 5 sticks as 3″ long so about 15″ inches of cinnamon stick. If you don’t like the cinnamon taste so much, you can reduce the quantity.
I hope it is helpful and thank you again for suggesting the edit!
Perfect recipe of nehari , can I use your garam masalah as nehari masalah ?
Thank you so much for your encouraging words! Yes, you can use garam masala in place of Nihari masala. I make garam masala at home as it is more flavorful and aromatic.
Hi, hv a query…both the cardamoms black & green, hv to be deskinned
( peeled) before grinding ? Tx
Hello Shalini,
No, only green cardamom needs to be peeled before grinding.
Hope that helps.
This is an awesome curated combination of Spices. We tried it with spices from Kerala.