Podi Masala, Gun Powder or Idli Podi or Milagai Podi (in Tamil) is a form of powdered spice found and used mostly in the southern parts of India. This spice mix is typically made with lot of dried red chillies which is one of the most important ingredient.
Dry red chillies along with different types of lentils, curry leaves and sesame seeds (another important ingredient) are first roasted and then grind together to make a powder. Generally served with idli and dosa, for which it also got its name as idli podi.
Podi masala are normally on the higher side of spiciness, what I mean is it is not for those who are faint hearten and thus another name for podi masala is Gun Powder. Gun powder is served mixed with sesame oil (til oil) or ghee (clarified butter) as an accompaniment with dosa, idli or rice.
Today the use of Gun Powder or Podi masala has reached another level, with more people experimenting on new dishes and with invention of more fusion foods, Podi or Gun Powder is now widely used by many communities.
Podi - literally means powder. In Tamil podi word is used for masala or spices and mostly spices are in the form of powder, like chilli powder is called milangai podi and so on........ Podi masala or Gun Powder was invented not to accompany with Dosa or Idli but to mix with rice. Poor people who were not able to afford even vegetables on a daily basis used to eat their rice mixed with podi masala.
Friends, this gun Powder spice (masala) mix is an interesting recipe, quick, fast and easy to make. It can be stored for 2 - 4 months. So now you also want to make it ?........ Here is the complete recipe, Let's Begin..............
Ingredients and Steps:
Heat up a pan on low to medium flame.
- Add 20 - 30 dry red chilli
- Add 3 - 4 tbsp (1 cup) curry leafs (fresh or dried)
Roast them for 3 - 5 minutes until they are crispy.
Take them out on a plate and let them cool down.
In the mean time use the same heated pan to roast few more ingredients.
Keep the heated pan on low flame.
- Add 1/2 cup urad dal (black gram / black lentil)
- Add 1/4 cup chana dal (split chickpeas)
Dry roast them on low flame till the color of the lentils starts changing.
- Add 1 tsp black pepper corns
- Add 2 - 3 tbsp sesame seeds (til)
Keep dry roasting over low flame until golden.
Then keep it separately to cool down.
Once all the roasted ingredients cools down to room temperature.
Put all of them in a mixer grinder and grind them to get a fine to coarse form of powder.
- Add 1/2 tsp hing (asafoetida)
- Add salt as per taste
- Add 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Grind once again to mix all ingredients together.
Gun Powder or Podi Masala is ready.
Enjoy it with your south indian recipes or CLICK HERE for RICE APPE recipe.
Gun Powder has a self life of 2 -3 months, if stored in a air tight container and kept in a dry place and if you refrigerate it, then the self life increases to 4 - 6 months.
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