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Filling a masala dabba: seven spices and how much of each
Which spices earn a place in the round steel tin, how much to keep in each bowl, and when to refill.
A masala dabba is a round steel tin with seven small bowls and a lid, kept beside the stove so the spices you use every day are one hand away. What goes in it depends on your cooking, but most Kerala and South Indian kitchens settle on a similar seven.
Ours, sold filled for ₹1,450 with 700 g of spice, holds mustard seeds, cumin, turmeric powder, Kashmiri chilli powder, coriander powder, whole black pepper and fenugreek. Mustard and cumin go into almost every tempering. Turmeric and chilli colour curries and fries. Coriander thickens and rounds out gravies. Pepper is for rasam, stir fries and the Kochi kitchen’s many pepper roasts, and fenugreek is for sambar, fish curry and pickles. A North Indian kitchen might swap fenugreek for garam masala and pepper for whole cloves or ajwain.
Fill each bowl only two-thirds full. A bowl filled to the brim spills when the lid goes on, and powders spoil faster when they sit for months. For a family of four, a filled bowl of turmeric or chilli lasts about three weeks; seeds last six to eight. Refill from airtight jars in the cupboard, not straight from the packet.
Wipe the bowls dry before refilling, never wash and refill the same day, and keep the dabba away from the steam of a pressure cooker. A tin that stays dry keeps powders bright and free of lumps.
