Roasted Curry Powder

Roasted curry powder is made by dry roasting coriander, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, curry leaves and sometimes rice or pandan until dark brown, then grinding them together. It is the foundation of Sri Lankan meat and seafood curries, such as black pork curry, chicken curry, mutton, cuttlefish and crab, cooked with onions, garlic, ginger and coconut milk.

Choose a mild roasted curry powder for family cooking, a hot or extra hot one if you like real heat, and a dark roasted blend for black curries with the deepest colour and smokiness. Many roasted curry powders are made with little chilli, so cooks add chilli powder or crushed chillies to taste, while hot versions have it built in. Large family bags are common, since many Sri Lankan households cook with it every day.

Add roasted curry powder after the onions and garlic have softened, fry it for a minute so it releases its aroma, then add the meat and a little water or coconut milk. For a deeper flavour, toast the powder in a dry pan until it darkens a shade more, watching it closely. Store in an airtight tin away from the hob. See Jaffna curry powder for a hotter northern style, everyday curry powder for vegetables, coconut milk for the gravy, and all our curry powders.