Kuzhambu Milagai Thool – Kulambu Milagai Podi

Kuzhambu Milagai Thool – How to make kuzhambu milagai podi – South Indian Kuzhambu thool – Kulambu Milagai Thool Recipe – All Purpose Curry Powder – Madras Curry Powder

Every family has its own little secret recipe for podi’s and powders which make their food taste different and better than others.  They are made with few basic kitchen spices and is a must for South Indian dishes as it does make a difference in taste and texture of the dish.

What is Kuzhambu Milagai Thool ?

Typical Tamilian homes, instead of using chili powder and dhania powder separately ,substitute with this podi /mixed gravy powder (Kalantha Milagai Podi). In some homes its just a combination of dry red chili and coriander seeds, while some include extra items to give good aroma and texture. Here is my family recipe for one such all-purpose gravy powder which we usually make in bulk and store for up to a year. The key ingredients are sun dried for few days and then dry roasted in a huge kadai and then sent to mills to get it ground to a fine powder. Then its air-dried for few hours and stored in air-tight boxes sealing tightly.

Print Recipe

Kuzhambu Milagai Thool

Kuzhambu Milagai Thool / Kulambu Milagai Podi - is an all purpose curry powder hailing from Tamil Nadu. This is a basic curry powder that is so versatile and can be used for any type of wet/ dry curries and gravies. Also commonly termed as Madras Curry Powder.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time10 minutes mins

Total Time15 minutes mins

Course: condiments

Cuisine: Indian, madras, south indian, tamil nadu

Keyword: kulambu milagai thool, kulambu podi, kuzhambu milagai thool, madras curry powder

Servings: 1 kg

Author: Mullai Madavan

Ingredients

Ingredients - 1 (for bulk quantity)

• ¼ kg Dry red chili long
• ¾ kg Dry coriander seeds
• 100 grams Black pepper corns
• 100 grams Cumin seeds
• 100 grams Split red gram / pigeon peas (thuvaram paruppu)
• 50 grams Fenugreek seeds
• 25 grams Turmeric powder
• 25 grams Curry leaves

Ingredients - 2 (for small quantity)

• 50 chilies Dry red chili long
• 1½ cup Coriander seeds
• ¼ cup Split red gram / pigeon peas ( thuvaram paruppu)
• ¼ cup Black pepper corns
• ¼ cup Cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon Fenugreek seeds
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 10 leaves Curry leaves

Instructions

• For Bulk Batch: Ingredients under table-1, Sun dry each item separately except curry leaves and turmeric. Then dry roast one item at a time (except turmeric) until they release nice aroma, they should bear the colour (shown above) when roasted. Let cool and then send it to the mill for grinding along with the pack of turmeric to mix. When they are back, spread on a newspaper and air-dry for few hours. Then store in air-tight boxes.
• For Small Batch : Ingredients under table-2, Dry roast each item in a plain tawa or pan except turmeric. Roast them until the colour turns to light brown or aroma awakens. Let cool and then grind them using an Indian mixer mate or dry coffee grinder in small batches. Use turmeric while grinding and spread the ground powder on a paper to dry or cool. If its too coarse then i would suggest you to use a sieve or jalladai to filter the big ones and grind them again. Cool them before storing in air-tight boxes.

Notes

Spice level can be adjusted according to your family needs, this one is definitely very spicy as it includes chili and black peppercorns. Turmeric and curry leaves are optional and can be added directly when cooking. Normally would add 3 teaspoons of this powder, for a dish which serves 2 (approx.) substituting the related items. Some kuzhambu powders include bengal gram but we personally ignore as it makes the gravy too gooey. Addition of Toor dal ensures thick gravy and helps to increase quantity if feeding a large family. If you are in India or other hot climate places then you can dry the spices outside in the sun. Otherwise just dry roast over a tawa, let cool completely before grinding. Yield: Small batch would yield about 1.50 cups (approx.) of Kuzhambu Powder. This could last about 2 months depending on use. The bulk will yield roughly 1 kg of powder.

For Bulk  Batch: Ingredients under table-1,  Sun dry each item separately except curry leaves and turmeric. Then dry roast one item at a time (except turmeric) until they release nice aroma, they should bear the color (shown above) when roasted. Let cool and then send it to the mill for grinding along with the pack of turmeric to mix. When they are back, spread on a newspaper and air-dry for few hours. Then store in air-tight boxes.

For Small Batch : Ingredients under table-2, Dry roast each item in a plain tawa or pan except turmeric. Roast them until the color turns to light brown or aroma awakens. Let cool and then grind them using an Indian  mixer mate or dry coffee grinder in small batches. Use turmeric while grinding and spread the ground powder on a paper to dry or cool. If its too coarse then I would suggest you to use a sieve or jalladai to filter the big ones and grind them again. Cool them before storing in air-tight boxes.