Back to Basics…..
Being far away from home it always makes you crave for those things which your mum would always make…… be it those traditional recipes or some basic masalas or any of those grandma secret’s. Â
This always happens with me……. I might decide to make something, try to recollect what all things would go into it and then gather them all and begin with it….. half way through it I would realize that either something is wrong or I am missing one of the ingredients or should I do this first or that?????? And then, with dirty hands pick up the phone dial 0091 12345………. hold the phone between your head and your shoulder standing in the kitchen and narating what all you have done till now to your mum sitting a few thousand miles away and then…….. now what to do???? How much of this goes into it???? I dont have this, what should I do now? and a whole list of things…………. The phone companies have surely been benefitted with people moving across oceans and more so when food enthusiasts like me decide to make something just like my ma did and then get stuck in the middle, call up and, “now what???”  PHEW!!!! God alone know how many $$$ I would have spent jotting down recipes on phone!!!!!!!!!!
And so this time when I went back I captured it all on my cam and decided to put it up on the blog so that I have it with me LIVE forever!!!!! 
Â
For those of you who tried to guess the two mountains……… The first one is not a flour, its CHAAT MASALA. I don’t doubt your culinary skills one bit …… the pic was not too good to reveal the actual thing. Most of you got the second one right as some masala and Swapna, Jyotsna and Trupti guessed it correctly as GARAM MASALA.
 I would usually get a full years supply of these two masalas with me. But then the generous me would keep distributing to friends and colleagues around nicely advertising my ma’s masalas (she can actually start selling them 
)and then half way through the year realize that the stock is over. 
So then the wait begins ……. either someone coming to Singapore or when can I go back!!!!! And then finally I would give up hope and try to make them myself. Then starts a whole lot of phone calls and…… you know it right!!!!
So now I got no excuses for spending $$$ on these………..
Lets start with the first mountain……… a very simple Chaat masala. I have never used any store bought chaat masala and my friends who have tried this have stopped buying chaat masala from outside.
I use this over almost everything. Though its called as chaat masala I should actually rephrase it as multipurpose masala!!!!!! Add to your butter milk or sprinkle over freshly cut fruits, spread a laddle full of dosa batter on the tava; sprinkle some chopped onions tomatoes bell peppers cheese and this masala, make potato chaat chana chaat or any other chaat with it, sprinkle over each layer of veggies on a sandwich!!!! My hubby when he is hungry and I am not around would make a very simple snack of bread butter and this masala sprinkled over it.
WARNING: Before you start making any of these masalas, spread newspapers around generously!!!!!!!! In India we have maids to cleanup but outside we all are our own maids!!!!!
So lets begine with this very simple Chaat Multipurpose Masala……..
You will need:
-
2 cups jeera
-
1/2 cup black salt
-
1/2 peppercorns
-
1/2 table salt
Heat all the ingredients individually (black and white salt can be heated together). Keep stiring continously.
Heat the jeera till you start getting the smell (don’t brown it too much!!!!!) and as for the salts and peppercorns, just warm them.
Grind the jeera and pepper corns together for a fine powder
and pass it through your flour sieve
Now mix in both the salts nicely with hands. (Adjust the salt quantity according to your taste. With the measure given here it can be slightly on a saltier (!?!?) side for some of you. But since its a masala I like it to be a bit strong. I leave it to you to decide what you like it as. )
And thats your mountain of a Multiporpose Masala.
===============================================================
Lets move on to our second mountain now……….
For this garam masala you will find most of the ingredients in your house. Its quite mild and I use it almost everyday in all my indian cooking. (Sometimes even when I am making a tomato sauce base for pizza :P )
You will need:
-
2 cups corriander seeds
-
2 cups Bay leaves (for ease of measurement I have broken them into small pieces)
-
1 cup jeera
-
1/2 cup javitri
-
1/2 cup peppercorns
-
1/2 cup cloves
-
1/2 cup cinnamon
-
200gms of whole red kashmiri chillies
Heat the red chillies first and then all the other masalas (all together) (No need to heat bay leaves)
Everything goes together in the mixie (we did red chillies and all the masalas separately, but you can do it all together as well)
And then pass it through your flour sieve
Whatever cannot pass through and remains back in the sieve, goes back again in the mixie to make a finer powder. Keep repeating this till you get tired and not much remains to be passed through the sieve. Mix it all properly. Remember to use a spoon or wear multipurpose gloves while mixing it together.
And here goes the second mountain of Garam Masala.
===============================================================
I hope Trupti likes this for her spring fling event. (there is something more coming as well. )
And it also goes to Sushma for her Tipology of the month!!!!! :)
Comments
35 Responses to “Back to Basics…..”
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Coffee
Hi and welcome to The Cafe!
Thanks for stopping by and feel free to browse through the recipes. Your comments and feedback are more than welcome.
Do come back for some more coffee…..
~ COFFEE!!
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Yay!! I got the second one right!!
It’s so typical of us to carry some or the other masala or pickle back with us from India…. I always say I need additional luggage space for my foodstuffs alone! 
Do participate in the Safety Moment, check the update too.
Both the masala recipes are different from what you get in recipe books. I am book marking these recipes, and make them for sure. It is home made it has to be good
Love it!!!! What a wonderful entry, Coffee! Love the idea of sprinkling this masala on bread!
can’t wait to see more!
trupti
Nice useful post coffee. As usual clear presentation. No one get confused. Tks for sharing. Viji
Both recipes rock!! Thank you for both and authentic powders!!
My Chat masala looks yellowish and Garam masala looks dark brown,both store bought!! Do you blame me now for not guessing correctly?! ;D
superb post. hey coffee, did you get the entry to MBP i sent a week or so ago? if no, i’ll send it again.
awesome detailed pics and recipe!!
BTW i too guessed it as “spice mix” which translates to garam masala??? i got so scared of the belan lady that i just spelt it out in english ha!ha!
Total fun, Coffee-you’ve captured stuff for keeps
Good presentation coffee.Pictures are good.Don’t want to taste them directly!1:-DD
Coffee,
Its 2 in the afternoon I am hungry and your chaat masala on top of bread and butter makes me more hungrier .
Love,love ,love your chat masala recipe ,wow I always thought it would be much more complicated ..
adding you to my blog roll
Sreelu
http://sreelu.blogspot.com
Hi Coffee,
You did nice work by capturing everything , so that we can even tune our culinary skill littlebit perfect…
Thanks for sharing dear…
WOW!
Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful recipes! Why I never thought to sieve ground spices, I will never know.
I can’t wait to try
Linda
Hi Coffee, thats a wonderful authentic recipes to make masala’s.
Waiting to see more traditional recipes
Hey Coffee (Rooma),
This is my first time here! I wish I had more time to catch with all these wonderful blogs out there!
I keep hearing about “Coffee” all over the place. And i finally made it from…uh.. i dont remember where I came in from!
You have a lovely blog! And i love your MBP event. I had no clue about it. I love to take part in all these events .. unfortunately I dont have enough time to participate!
But I’m too tempted now, looking forward to u’re theme in April (I think i just missed the deadline for March)!
Your masala’s look and sound yummy! Love the pictures with so many pretty cups and ingredients!
Cheers
Latha
he he he…coffee… i am with u. i still happens to me. thanks to 24X7 call center bk in india;)
sorry coffee… i couldn’t post recipe for ur this month’s event. too lazy;) anything other than rolling i am in:) he h ehe..
Aha! So that was chaat masala!
Wow Coffee!! Wonderful pics! of course, detailed and neat presentation , as usual!!!! ANy more coming up? and how abt some snaps of the busy streets of Mumbai … sure miss those here!!!!
Recipe for home-made masalas..Wow..Super..Thanks a lot! M happy I cud guess the second one correctly:)
Swaps
hey coffee, I too do the same in my kitchen and most of my suitcases are full of masalas and groceries. Nice entry and I learnt how to make it from you now. thanks
sharmi
Coffee,
The garam masala powder does inded look so fresh and colourful. I remember those days when amma used to make it at home and the aroma of these masalas would fill the entire house. Loved it. I never knew this is how we make chat masala. Thanx for both the recipes.
You can start an international business by making some extra for me and other lazy bums like me who love the home made masalas but too lazy to do all the grinding and seiving !!!
Like you, I too get lots of masalas from India but the supply dwindles pretty soon
So, will you consider the business idea 
you already have a customer !!
Coffee
Loved how your Ma makes the chaat masala, thats really nice, can you please mail me some
The Garam masala, is almost the same way as we do it, only we don’t use corriander seeds, red chillies in garam masala
Hi Coffee.
Home made masala always good and tastes better, Thanks for sharing such a wonderful and useful recipe. Thanks.
Hey Coffee, Thanks for dropping by my blog and leading me here.. I’ve seen your name mentioned all around blogoland, good to meet you finally :). Love, love, love your blog…
Love these homemade masalas, but I’m too lazy to make these, so is my mom, so it is store brought masalas for me.
Thanx a lot for this wonderful masala recipe coffee…You know i always try to look at the back side lable of masala carton to get some or the other idea of making this. But i think no one has disclosed yet…Thanx a lot!!!
Hmmm….. if they tell you the ingredients, you will never buy it from them .
My mom gets tired of me asking her cooking queestion on her sunday early morning even before she has had her tea!thanks a lot for the masalas. they are very useful.
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hai,
This is cool.i will try preparing as a south indian we make garam masala that we use in non-veg that is different.Thanku.
And ur narration it relates a lot to me too…..i am sure it relates to somany of us living away from home.thank u for masalaas.
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