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Bottle Masala
Bottle Masala is a traditional Indian recipe (from Mumbai) a classic curry splice blend of 25 ingredients including red kashmiri chillies for colour that is an aromatic and fragrant spice blend. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Indian version of: Bottle Masala.
prep time
280 minutes
cook time
30 minutes
Total Time:
310 minutes
Makes:
300g
Rating: 
Tags : CurryVegetarian RecipesSpice RecipesHerb RecipesIndian Recipes
This is also known as 'Mumbai Masala' and is a classic East Indian spice blend. The name comes from the green or amber coloured long-necked beer bottles that the spices is traditionally stored in to prevent sunlight from affecting the spice blend. Yes, I know that Mumbai is in western India, but the spice blend became popular when supplied to the British East India company centred around the Bay of Bengal, hence the 'East India' description. The preparation here is slow, but, traditionally this spice blend is made in quantities of 5kg or more and when bottled properly it lasts for years. So, a little effort goes a long way.
The negkesar in this recipe represents the seeds of
Mesua ferrea (also known as Ceylon ironwood, cobra saffron, Indian rose chestnut, ironwood tree, mesua, poached egg tree) is a species in the family Calophyllaceae native to the Indomalayan realm. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental for its graceful shape, greyish-green foliage with a striking pink to red flush of drooping young leaves, and its large, fragrant white flowers. It is the national tree of Sri Lanka, as well as the state tree of Mizoram and state flower of Tripura in India.
The tree can grow over 30m tall, often buttressed at the base with a trunk up to 2m in diameter. The bark of younger trees has an ash grey color with flaky peelings, while of old trees the bark is dark ash-grey with a red-brown blaze. It has simple, opposite, narrow, oblong to lanceolate, blue-grey to dark green leaves that are 7–15cm long and 1.5–3.5cm wide, with a whitish underside. The emerging young leaves are red to yellowish pink and drooping. The branches are slender, terete and glabrous. The bisexual flowers are 4–7.5cm in diameter, with four white petals and a center of numerous orange yellow stamens. The fruit is an ovoid to globose capsule with one to two seeds.
The flowers, leaves, seeds and roots are used as herbal medicines in India, Malaysia, etc. and in nag champa incense sticks. Nagkesar oil is extracted from the seeds.
Ingredients:
125g dried Kashmiri red chillies
25g Sweet red Chillies (Reshampati chillies)
50g Coriander seeds
10g (1½ tbsp) Cumin seeds
25g (3 tbsp) Sesame seeds til
25g (2½ tbsp) blue Poppy seeds (khus khus)
25g (2¼ tbsp) Mustard seeds rai
10g (½ tbsp) hulled Wheat grains
20g (1½ tbsp) dried Chickpeas (chana dal)
15g (2 tbsp) ground Turmeric
10g (1 3/4 tbsp) ground Black pepper
8cm stick Cinnamon
6 whole Cloves
4 Green cardamom pods
1 Black cardamoms pods
1/2 tsp Cobra saffron seeds (negkesar)
1/2 tsp Allspice berries
1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
1/2 tsp Mace
1/2 tsp Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) seeds
1/2 tsp Sichuan pepper
1/2 Star Anise
1/2 tsp Caraway seeds shahi
1/2 Nutmeg
1 Indian Bay leaf
Method:
Clean and remove the stems from the chilies. Dry the chilies and all spices in the sun for a few days until you are sure there is no moisture in left
Dry roast the spices and chilies individually in an earthenware or cast iron pan. Once done, turn out onto a plate and allow to cool.
Blend all the ingredients one at a time in a spice blender. Sift the spices through a fine-meshed sieve then combine all the spices so they are thoroughly blended together. This is best done by sifting the spices several times through your sieve.
Use to fill jars that have been sterilized and dried in a low oven before use (any trace of water could lead to spoilage).
The bottle masala can last for up to 2 years if sealed well and kept in a cool dry, dark, place.
