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Indian Spices-Glossary of Indian Spices in English,Tamil and Hindi-Indian Spices Names (list)

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Find below a list of  basic Indian Spices and their names in Hindi and Tamil. I get mails from foreigners asking me about Indian spices, so I decided to introduce Indian spices, spice powder and few other ingredients commonly used in Indian cooking.

Indian Spices
My Spice Box 
In the picture above – Clockwise -Yellow powder is turmeric powder- mustard seeds-fenugreek seeds, split urad dal-cumin seeds-whole black pepper and red chillies in the center. White box behind is Asafoetida also know as hing. It is used in many dishes to enhance flavor. It also aids in digestion.

Whole garam masala

In the picture above (CW)-Cloves-marathi mokku-star anise-cardamom-cinnamon

Glossary of Indian Spices in English, Tamil and Hindi 

English Tamil Hindi
Asafoetida Perungayam Hing
Aniseed/Fennel Sombu Saunf
Black Cumin Seeds Karun jiragam Shahjeera
Bay leaf Brinji Ilai Tej Patta
Black salt Induppu Kala Namak
Cardamom Elakkai Ilaichi
Cinnamon Pattai Dalchini
Cloves Krambu Lavang
Coriander seeds Kothamalli vidhai Sukha Dhania
Coriander Powder Malli podi Pisa Dhania
Chillies Milagai Mirchi
Chilli powder Milagai Podi Lal Mirch Powder
Cumin Seeds Jeeragam Jeera
Coriander leaves Kothamalli thalai Dhaniya pattē
Carom seeds  Omam Ajwain
Curry Leaves Karuveppilai Kadhi patta
Dry ginger Sukku Sonth
Dry mango powder Mangai Podi Amchur
Fenugreek seeds Vendayam Methi Dana
Green chilli Pachai Milagai Hari Mirch
Ginger Ingi Adrak
Garlic Poondu Lehsun
Holy Basil Tulasi Tulsi
Mace Jathikai thol Javitri
Mint leaves Pudina Pudina
Mustard seeds Kadugu Rai
Nutmeg Jathikai Jaiphal
Onion Seeds Vengaya vithai Kalonji
Peppercorns Milagu Kali Mirch
Poppy seeds Kasa kasa Khus Khus
Pomegranate Seeds Mathalam vidhai Anardana
Red Chilli Milagai vathal Lal Mirchi
Saffron Kungumapoo Kesar
Sesame seeds Ellu Til
Star Anise Annachi mokku Chakra Phool
Turmeric Manjal Haldi
Tamarind Puli Imli
White Pepper Vellai milagu Safed Mirchi

These spice powders are commonly used in Indian cuisine 

Indian Spice Powder
In front of the spoon is mace (Jathibathri/Jathikai thol in tamil) and at the back of the spice powder is bay leaf.

Coriander Powder– Clean and dry coriander seeds in the sun. Then get it ground in the flour mill. Alternatively, you can dry roast coriander seeds in a pan on medium flame until you get a nice aroma of roasted coriander seeds. Cool and powder it. The seeds can be powdered either by roasting them or without roasting them. They give different flavors to the curries.

Cumin Powder – Dry roast cumin seeds in a pan and then grind it to a fine powder.  You can use the coffee grinder or mixie for powdering it. Store it in an air tight container.

Red Chilli Powder -Dry Red chillies in the sun and give it in the flour mill for dry grinding. It is available ready made.


Garam Masala Powder -Garam masala- Garam means “hot” and masala means a “mixture of spices” is a blend of ground spices common in North Indian and other South Asian cuisines. Each state has its own spice blend or masala powder. Refer Kerala Garam Masala powder. More will be posted soon.

Turmeric Powder – It is used in almost all curries and dals. It imparts flavor and color to the dishes. It has lot of medicinal properties. It is available ready made.

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Comments

  6. Great effort and extremely useful for us who live in Europe. But may I request that you also put in the Malayalam terms if you can? My mother is from Kottayam and she uses mostly Malayalam terminology even though she speaks Tamil – a consequence of my "pattar" heritage ! When I try to make Indian dishes, I go usually by the terminology used by my mother and your cuisine is close to what we eat at home !

    Thanks or "merci beaucoup" as we say in these parts for an excellent blog !

    V. Suresh
    Strasbourg, France

    Reply

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