- coriander
- cumin
- fenugreek
- tumeric
You can also add:
- ginger
- garlic
- fennel
- cinnamon
- clove
- mustard
- cardamom (green or black)
- mace
- nutmeg
- pepper (red, black or white)
Traditionally each and every cook had her (or his) own variation of this mixture. If you’re used to the standardized flavor of curry powder, you’re probably expecting those first four ingredients. One of my favorite commercial blends starts with the first four and then adds black pepper, bay leaves, celery seed, nutmeg, cloves, onion, red pepper and ginger. An Indian friend of mine used a lot more cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg in hers which made a nice, sweet blend. She gave me a little bit of this rich blend that she’d made up herself and encouraged me to try adding it to different dishes. Khadijah — thank you. I urge every cook to play with variations on this and other spice blends and see what adding even 1/4 tsp. into a relatively plain dish will do!
