Karuvapillai Podi (Curry Leaf Spice Powder)

This is one of the few spice mixes in the book that we hadn't made yet. I decided to grab a fresh bunch of curry leaves at the Indian grocery and change that. It's a very nice mix. And TF is extremely enthusiastic about it. It's basically just a lot of curry leaves with a little turmeric, asafetida, and chili mixed in, plus a couple legumes to round things out. Very straightforward in ingredients, but complex in flavour and a delicious addition to many curries and pulaos.

Karuvapillai Podi

From 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Instructions

• 2 Tbsp. skinned split pigeon peas (toovar dal)
• 1 tsp. canola oil
• 1/2 c. firmly packed fresh curry leaves
• 2 Tbsp. skinned split black lentils (mapte beans/urad dal)
• 6-8 dried red Thai, cayenne, or arbol chilies, stems removed
• 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp. ground asafetida

Directions

1. Combine the pigeon peas, canola oil, curry leaves, lentils, and chilies in a bowl and toss to coat. Be thorough and try to make sure everything gets a thin coating of oil.
2. Preheat a skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add the oil-coated mixture and stir-fry until the leaves feel dry and the legumes turn golden-brown (2-3 minutes).
4. Immediately transfer the mixture to a plate to cool.
5. Once everything is cool to the touch, transfer to a spice grinder and finely grind. (You may need to do this in several batches.)
6. Add the turmeric and asafetida and stir to combine.
7. Transfer to an air-tight container and store in a cool dry place -- but not the fridge! -- for up to 3 months.