Mango Powder

Amchoor / amchur / umchoor / green mango powder / aamchur / amchor.

Made from sun – dried mangoes, it’s used as a souring agent or to tenderize meats.

Substitutes: lemon juice, tamarind, chopped fresh mango (use more) or chopped fresh fresh papaya (use more).

Asafoetida powder

Asafoetida powder/ asafetida / devil’s dung/ ferula/ foetida/ food of the gods/ heeng/ hing (powder)/imguva.

Pronunciation: ASS – uh – FET –a – duh.

This powdered gum resin imparts a very strong onion – garlic flavor to Indian Dishes. Use it sparingly. A little goes a long way.
Substitutes: garlic powder or onion powder.

Peper

Papper tastes just spicy hot. The most common pepper is round balck, shivelled and hard. In India, pepper is used in every type of regional cookery. Meat In the north. Lentils in the south. Fish in the east. And vegetables in the west. It’s also used in herbal tea. Green pepper is pickled.

Medicinal Values: Black pepper is a stimulant, digestive and diuretic. It is said to relive Flatulence, colds, amnesia and even impotency.

Green Chillies

Chillies are available fresh, dried powdered, flaked, in oil, in sauce, bottled and pickled. The fresh ones (when unripe) come in various shades of green. The ripe ones are red. When dried, they look like crumpled rubies.
Capsicum preparations are used as counter – irritants for lumbago and rheumatic disorders.

Medicinal Values: Chillies are highly in Vitamin A & C . They are also added to medicines to relive sore throat.

Red Chillies

They are deceptively beautiful. Their taste ranges from mild to dynamite. While they scorch your taste buds, they also blend a little heat and a whole lot of fragrance and flavour to Indian cuisine. They add the zing to Indian Cooking.

Black Mustard Seeds

Indian cooks prefer these over the large yellow mustard seeds that are more common in the west.

Substitutes: brown mustard seed (very close), Yellow mustard seeds.

White Mustard Seeds

Smaller and hotter than the yellow mustard seeds that most western cooks are familiar with. Mustard is believed to posses the ability to calm the mind, create a peaceful personality and sharpen intelligence.

Brown Cardamom Pods

Cardamom figures prominently in various type of Indian Cuisines. It is the best to buy cardamom seeds still encased in their natural flavour – protecting pods, which can discard after you remove the seeds. Brown cardamom is a similar spice that Indians use in savory dishes.

Substitutes: brown cardamom, equal parts ground nutmeg and cinnamon, equal parts ground cloves and cinnamon, nutmeg or cinnamon.

Medicinal value: cardamom is aromatic, stimulating and refreshing. It rekindles. It rekindles digestive fire, refreshes the mind and is a heart stimulant, It also relieves gas.

Fenugreek

Fenugreek / Fenugreek seeds/ methi/ halba

This adds an earthy flavour to the curries, chutneys, and sauces. It’s available as seeds or powder.

Medicinal value: useful in inflammatory disorders, joint pains and in diabetes.