Cardamom powder is used in various sweet and savory dishes and beverages. It has a wonderful, sweet, spicy, and fruity aroma that adds a unique taste to both sweet and savory dishes. Let’s learn how to make flavorful and aromatic cardamom powder from scratch in just a few simple steps.
Watch How to Make Cardamom Powder Recipe
What is Cardamom Powder?
Cardamom powder, also called Elaichi powder, is a spice made by grinding the seeds of the cardamom plant. These seeds have a strong, pleasant aroma and taste. The powder is used to add flavor to food and drinks. It is commonly used in cooking, especially in dishes from places like India and the Middle East. People also use it to make tea and coffee taste better. Cardamom is often used in traditional medicine systems like Ayurveda to aid digestion. It may help reduce symptoms of indigestion, bloating, and gas. Chewing cardamom seeds may also help freshen your breath. Source If you are unable to find cardamoms or have run out, here are some cardamom substitutes to try!
What does Cardamom taste like?
Cardamom has a warm and slightly sweet flavor with a bit of spice. It also has a hint of citrus and mint. Some people say it tastes a little like ginger. It’s used in cooking to add a special flavor to sweet and savory dishes. It can make foods taste more interesting and delicious!
What does Cardamom smell like?
Cardamom has a lovely smell that’s both sweet and spicy. It’s like a mix of cinnamon and cloves, but with a hint of floral freshness, like flowers in a garden. There’s also a touch of citrus, like a lemon or grapefruit. When you use cardamom in cooking or baking, it fills the air with a comforting and uplifting aroma that makes everything feel cozy and inviting.
Ingredients
For this recipe, you’ll only need one thing – Green Cardamom pods. These pods come in two sizes: Jumbo and Regular. Jumbo pods have more seeds inside. This makes the cardamom powder extra flavorful and aromatic. But use any green cardamom pods you can find to make ground cardamom.
How to Make Cardamom Powder?
Cleaning Cardamoms: Check the cardamom pods for freshness and damage.
Note: I like to use whole pods with the husk to make cardamom powder, as the husk has flavor, too. If you prefer to do that, gently crack open the pods to remove the seeds and discard the husk. You don’t need to do the next step of roasting the pods if you are removing the seeds.
Roasting Cardamom:
Heat a pan over medium heat. Dry Roast the cardamom seeds until fragrant and slightly darker. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
Making Ground Cardamom:
Transfer the cooled roasted cardamom seeds to a spice grinder.
Grind until you achieve the desired consistency. I recommend getting a fine powder as that is better when adding cardamom powder to desserts. You can also run the powder through a sieve to remove any large pieces.
Store ground cardamom in an airtight container.
Expert Tips
After grinding, sieve the ground cardamom powder to remove any larger particles or husks, ensuring a smooth and uniform texture. Grind the seeds in small batches to ensure a consistent texture. It is also better to use the ground cardamom within a few weeks to have its best aroma and flavor. Store the ground cardamom powder in an airtight container away from light and moisture to maintain its freshness. To prevent contamination and preserve its freshness, scoop out the powder each time using a clean, dry spoon or measuring spoon.
How to Store?
Transfer the ground cardamom powder to an airtight container to prevent moisture from getting in. Store the container in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight, as light can degrade the flavor of the spice. Avoid storing ground cardamom near strong-smelling spices, as it can absorb other odors easily.
How Long does Ground Cardamom Last?
Ground cardamom can last for about 6 months if kept in a sealed container in a cool, dry place. However, its flavor might weaken over time, so it’s best to use it within the first few weeks after grinding for the best taste.
Uses of Ground Cardamom
Cooking: Add ground cardamom to your cooking for a warm and aromatic flavor in dishes like curries, soups, and rice. Baking / Sweets: Enhance your baked goods with ground cardamom for a unique and fragrant taste in cookies, cakes, and bread. It is also used in a variety of sweets, such as halwa and kheer (rice pudding). Beverages: Sprinkle ground cardamom into your hot drinks like coffee and tea for a flavorful twist. You can also add it to cold beverages like smoothies and lassi for a refreshing flavor. Spice Blends: Use ground cardamom or whole cardamom pods in spice blends such as garam masala or curry powder to add depth and richness to your dishes.
Whole Cardamom Pods to Ground Cardamom Conversion
This table shows approximately how much ground cardamom you can make from whole pods. Remember, the amounts might vary based on pod size and freshness. Adjust as needed for your recipe and taste preference.
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title: “Cardamom Powder Recipe” ShowToc: true date: “2024-10-26” author: “Jacqueline Hein”
Cardamom Powder is a handy spice used in many dishes in Indian cooking especially sweets, desserts, flavored drinks and rice meal. Cardamom powder is easy and quick to make at home. Though elachi or cardamom is used as whole in few recipes, cardamom powder is most needed. It is usually used in curries, gravies and most of Indian sweets so having them handy is a must. It takes just 10 minutes to make homemade cardamom powder.
What is Cardamom Powder?
Cardamom is a spice with a green color outer covering with mall black seeds inside. We used cardamom for a lot of dishes like biryani, pulao, masala powder, etc. The word cardamom is derived from the Latin word cardamom. Cardamom powder is pure cardamom along with its husk roasted well and grind to a fine powder. We usually remove the husk while powdering instantly in hand mortar & pestle and use only the cardamom seeds or pods inside. But the outer husk or skin of cardamom is very aromatic and flavorful that I usually use to store in the container that has tea powder or use it for making elachi tea. I have seen many using sugar along with cardamom powder while grinding to get a fine powder, but somehow I feel why to add other ingredients along with this wonder spice. Cardamom as such is so flavorful and I have given tips and tricks for how to make cardamom power at home. Cardamom is one of the expensive spice and store bought cardamom powder is very expensive sure to have preservatives too. I haven’t tried store bought cardamom powder not even once, even when the stock is over I used hand mortar n pestle to make it instantly and use it. Homemade cardamom powder is not only economical it is also free from preservatives.
Cardamom Powder Video
Amma usually makes it for me, then I started making it on my own. She collects the outer skin, and use it for making tea. But I grind it with skin as the outer skin is more aromatic and packed with flavors. Dry roasting is the tip to get a fine powder else the skin will not get powdered well.
Cardamom Powder is used in
Payasam / Kheer Biryani / Pulao Curries / Gravies Non-Veg Dishes
How to make Cardamom Powder Step by Step
1.Measure 1/4 cup and take green cardamom. 2.Add it to kadai. 3.To a tawa add green cardamom dry roast in low flame.When the outer cover has golden spots here and there stop roasting. Switch off. This takes at least 5 minutes in low flame. 4.Can you see the brown spots? Cool down completely. 5.Then transfer to mixer jar. Make sure the mixer jar is dry. 6.Grind to a fine powder. Cool down then store in a dry jar. 7.Slightly coarse is also ok. 8.Else you can sieve in a medium holed strainer and store it. Do not discard the remains. You can add it to your tea or mix with tea powder and store. Cool down spread in a plate then store in a clean dry container.
Expert Tips
Make sure the cardamom you choose is of good quality. If you want you can rinse it once and dry in sun well before roasting and grinding. Always cool down then grind so that there is no moisture while grinding. Cool down completely before storing. Green cardamom is always preferred for making cardamom powder. Make sure your mixer jar is dry before grinding.
Storage
It keeps well up-to 2 months in room temperature itself and in fridge for 6 months. Always store in a clean dry container free from moisture. Also use dry clean spoon every time, this increases shelf life.
1.What are the other names for Cardamom?
Cardamom is called by different name :
Cardamom in English Elachi in Hindi Elakkai in Tamil Elakulu in Telugu
2.What are the dishes that uses cardamom powder?
Cardamom powder is used in many dishes like payasam, kheer, tea, badam milk, ladoo, sweets etc.
3.Can I use black cardamom?
No green cardamom is always preferred for making homemade cardamom powder.
4.Difference between green cardamom and black cardamom. Are they the same?
No both are entirely different and they have completely different flavor and taste. Black cardamom is usually used for savory curries, gravies or even for pulao but not suitable for desserts, sweets. Whereas green cardamom is used in many dishes including sweets and savories.
5.Should we use sugar or rice flour along with cardamom while grinding to get a fine powder?
No not at all, you can make cardamom powder by using just one ingredient cardamom. If you have any more questions about this Cardamom Powder Recipe do mail me at [email protected]. In addition, follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest ,Youtube and Twitter . Tried this Cardamom Powder Recipe ? Do let me know how you liked it. Also tag us on Instagram @sharmispassions and hash tag it on #sharmispassions.
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