Kashmiri Masala Recipes

Steps:

• Heat a small skillet over medium heat; add cumin, bay leaves. cardamom, peppercorns, cloves, fennel seed, mace, and cinnamon sticks and dry roast until fragrant, 6 to 10 minutes.
• Allow to cool; add nutmeg. Grind the spices into a fine powder using a spice grinder or coffee grinder. Store in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Place red chiles, green chiles, cumin seeds, garam masala, ginger, garlic, grated coconut, and tomatoes into a blender; pulse several times to chop, then blend into a smooth paste.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, and continue cooking and stirring until the onion is very tender and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.
• Stir the spice paste into the onion and cook and stir until the oil separates from the mixture, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in lamb pieces and salt. Cook, stirring frequently over medium-high heat, until the lamb pieces are browned on all sides, about 8 minutes.
• Mix in yogurt, saffron, and blanched almonds until well combined.
• Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the meat is tender and the gravy is thick, about 1 hour.
• Garnish the curry with chopped cilantro before serving.

Steps:

• Dry roast all ingredients in a heavy bottomed pan, on medium heat, until a nice, spicy aroma rises. This should take about 6-8 minutes.
• Allow to cool and then grind together in to a fine powder.
• Store in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Heat a small, heavy-based frying pan over medium-hot heat.
• Separately dry roast each spice, except nutmeg, until each one starts to give out a beautiful, fragrant aroma. Remove from pan and leave to cool.
• Combine all roasted spices (not nutmeg) in a blender and grind to a fine powder.
• Add nutmeg and store in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Preheat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cumin and cinnamon; toast, shaking the skillet every few seconds, until the cumin seeds turn reddish brown, the cinnamon sticks appear brittle and the mixture is highly fragrant, 1-2 minutes.
• Immediately transfer the nutty-smelling spices to a plate to cool. Once they are cool to the touch, place them in a spice grinder. Add all the remaining spices and grind until the texture resembles that of finely ground black pepper.
• Store the spice blend in a tightly sealed container, away from excess light, heat and humidity, for up to 2 months.

Steps:

• Bash the nutmeg in a plastic bag with a rolling pin to break it into several smaller pieces!
• Remove the seeds from the Cardamom pods - again, a gentle bash with a rolling pin will suffice, or use a pestle and mortar.
• Place all the spices in a dry-frying pan or skillet and heat over a very low heat, stirring constantly.
• As soon as the aroma from the spices is released, remove the pan from the heat. (This step is essential to release the aromatic oils from the spices.).
• Working with only a small quantity at a time, put the spices in an electric blender or coffee grinder and grind them to a fine powder. (Takes about 30 to 40 seconds per handful of spices).
• Allow to cool. Store the Garam Masala in an air-tight container. As long as the container is tightly closed after each use, it should last for about 2 - 3 months with no adverse affects to the flavour and fragrance.
• Use as directed in recipes that call for garam masala.