Spices are an indispensable part of Indian cuisine. They are essential as well as important to add flavor, distinct aroma, and taste to the food that you are cooking.
Nowadays, everybody has been quite busy owing to the work pressure and thus, requires an instant hack to cook food. There are various spice mixes or blended spices introduced by spice manufacturers to help prepare an instant meal.
Thus, you must have these popular readymade Indian spice mixes in your kitchen. You can easily order blended spices online. If you are a working individual or a homemaker, these spices help to cook the food faster and also don't make you dependable on anybody.
There is a list of the best Indian spice blinds that you must store in your kitchen. Let’s check them out.
Garam masala
Here Garam means “hot” and Masala means “spice”. Garam masala is a must-have spice blend. It is made up of a combination of spices that are strictly part of the traditional Indian spices list.
Every spice has a unique aroma, flavor, and taste and comes from different regions of India. Garam masala can have only three spices, like the Bengal garam masala powder. Other than that, you can try out the Northern region garam masala powder that comes with 25 spices mixes.
It is quite a robust and strong spice blend, and you can easily distinguish it from other blended spices through its aroma. This is mostly used as a seasoning for veg and non-veg cooking and you can add it to fish, cheese, vegetables, lenticels, etc. It also makes a perfect blend for soup and stir-fry food.
The typical ingredients that a garam masala powder contains are cumin powder, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander powder, and cardamom.
Tandoori masala
Tandoori means “Cooking food in a special clay oven” and Masala means “spices”. This is one of the best blends of different spices and has a red vibrant color because of the addition of Kashmiri Mirch powder in it. If you consider the fact that in which part of India this spice is mostly popular, then it is the northern part of the Indian subcontinent.
This blend is used for cooking food in a tandoori. With these innovations, spice is used in several ways to add a perfect taste to Indian food. It has a smoky and hot spicy taste, and you can also get a sweet and tangy flavor. Try to use the masala to make veg and non-veg curries.
You can use blended spices to prepare grilled chicken, grilled fish, vegetables, and more. You can also add it while preparing any cheese items. Just two spoons of tandoori masala are enough to give your food the extra hype that it needs.
The typical ingredients in a tandoori masala are cumin, black peppercorns, ginger, garlic, nutmeg, cloves, Kashmiri chiles, turmeric, coriander, green cardamom, ginger, and cinnamon.
Chat masala
Who doesn't like the hot, sweet, spicy, and tangy taste of Indian street food? If you want to bring an instant tangy taste to the food, then chat masala is your go-to spice. It is used as a seasoning and is quite similar to pepper and salt.
Chat masala would definitely make your bland food interesting. It has a particular taste that goes well with oats as well. If you are preparing any street food at your home, then you can use chat masala as a seasoning.
Other than that, you can use it to liven up the dishes, such as eggs, pickles, or any kind of snack item. You can also add it to any bland food and make it tasty or add it to salad, barbecue, seasoning, and fruits. Try it with yogurt dips and curries and soup goes equally well with chat masala.
The typical ingredients in a Chat masala are cumin, ginger, black peppercorns, black salt, red chiles, dry mango powder, coriander powder, carom seeds powder, asafoetida, and dried mint.
Curry powder
If you are looking for a perfect blended spice, then this is the most important on the list. It is not used as a seasoning but will definitely help you make tasty and instant spicy food. It has a particular aroma and spicy taste and goes perfectly well while preparing Indian-style curries.
The basic purpose of using curry powder is to prepare a delicious curry instantly. It has a spicy, hot, and pungent taste, and you can use it to make a curry of any type. Other than this, you can also use it when preparing dip or sauce. It goes perfectly well with both non-veg and veg items.
However, do not get confused with curry powder and garam masala powder as they are quite different and used differently while cooking.
The typical ingredients in curry powder are turmeric, cinnamon, green cardamom, black peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, Kashmiri chilies, and curry leaves.
Panch Phoron
Panch Phoron is a popular Bengali 5 spice blend that is also known as the 5 tempering spices. It is made up of 5 whole spices which are typically popular in the eastern region of India. It has a crunchy taste and does not contain any salt. This blended spice can be used while cooking vegetables and non-veg items as well and can be added while tempering the food in warm oil.
You can use the spices in the whole form or prepare a powder form. After adding it to the oil you will realize it releases oil and adds a distinct flavor to the food. This is actually a non-spicy mix and comes without any kind of added chili. The aromatic and unique flavor helps it to distinguish it from any other spice mix. While cooking, you can also use it as a dry rub.
The typical ingredients of Panch Phoron are cumin seeds, fennel seeds, black mustard seeds, fenugreek, and nigella.
Conclusion
You can easily get these blended spices from any reputed Indian masala store or order online, which has become quite easier these days. You get the delivery right at your doorstep as you sit and relax at your home. However, the only thing that you need to do is check whether the spice blend is fresh, authentic, and genuine.
Order your packet of blended spices from JK Cart and try out different experiments with the flavors and spices, and it won't disappoint you. After buying, you must store it in an air-tight container to extend its lifespan.
