Kandi Podi is a hugely popular and quintessential spiced lentil powder from the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Back in the day, I used to travel through this state quite often for work. I would invariably end up with an ‘Andhra Thali’, or an unlimited meal with a variety of dishes including veggies, dal, rice, roti, chutneys and of course, kandi podi. We used to jokingly call this ‘gun powder’, because of the heat it packed. That said, it is absolutely delicious when mixed with steamed rice and ghee. My mouth is watering, just thinking about it!🤤
Andhra/South Indian Meal
South Indian Spice Powders
There’s an endless variety of South Indian spice powders. Some have only one use: rasam powder for rasam, kootu podi for kootu. Some are versatile: curry leaf powder for instance, can be added to sauteed vegetables, enjoyed with steamed rice and ghee, or with idlis. There are several of these powders I use frequently – I make them myself because they are easy and made to my taste. The problem though, is that most of them look similar so I have to save them in labeled containers as you can see from the picture below.
Labeled Spice Powders In My Kitchen
Kandi Podi
While I typically enjoy kandi podi with steamed rice and ghee, I also use it occasionally to spice up sauteed veggies. This is a very simple recipe, gets ready in minutes and lasts for at least a year. Just make sure you store it in an air tight container on a cool, dry kitchen shelf. The ingredients include chana dal, urad dal, toor dal, yellow mung, salt, red chili powder, cumin seeds and asafetida (hing). These are dry-roasted and blended. That’s right, there’s absolutely no oil in this recipe.
Kandi Podi Ingredients
Lentils are a great source of vegan protein. This no-oil lentil spice powder recipe is a great way get some protein while enjoying the spice and heat.
Don’t forget to check out our range of home-made spice powders here!:
- Homemade Moringa-Curry Leaf Spice Powder
- Kharam Podi – Spiced Idli Chutney Powder
- South Indian Curry Powder
- Sesame Chutney Powder
- Ridge Gourd Curry Powder Sauté (a recipe with its own curry powder)
- Kootu Podi
- Make-Your-Own Garam Masala
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Kandi Podi | Spiced Lentil Powder
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Chana Dal
- 1/4 Cup Tur Dal
- 1/4 Cup Yellow Mung
- 1/4 Cup Urad Dal
- 1 Tablespoon Cumin Seeds
- 1 Teaspoon Sea Salt - Or to taste
- 1 Pinch Asafetida (Hing)
Instructions
- Make sure you have all the ingredients handy: chana dal, urad dal, toor dal, yellow mung, salt, red chili powder, cumin seeds and asafetida (hing).
- Roast chana dal for 2-3 minutes in a pan on medium heat.
- Now add tur dal, yellow mung, urad dal and roast for for 3 to 4 minutes (you can also add cumin seeds here; roasting cumin seeds is optional).
- Allow roasted ingredients to cool for about 3-4 minutes and transfer them to a spice blender jar. If you have not roasted cumin seeds, add them to the jar along with salt, chili powder and asafetida.
- Blend to an almost fine powder and transfer to a bowl.
- Enjoy with steamed rice and ghee as part of an Andhra meal. The other delicious items on this plate are: Mango Fenugreek Salsa, South Indian Palak Dal and Spicy Cilantro Ginger Eggplant Sauté.
- Store in an air tight container, in a cool, dry shelf in the pantry.
Notes
Nutrition
