Simple, practical, and full of everyday flavour, Cumin Powder Recipe (Regular & Roasted) is a gluten-free, vegan Indian, World spices made with simple everyday ingredients in about 7 minutes. The recipe lays out the ingredients and each cooking step clearly, so you can adjust seasoning, texture, and serving size for your own kitchen.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 2 minutes
  • Cook time: 5 minutes
  • Total time: 7 minutes
  • Yield: 1 · 1 Small Jar
  • Category: Spices
  • Cuisine: Indian, World

Ingredients

  • ½ cup (60 grams) cumin seeds (or as needed)

Method

Roast Cumin Seeds

  1. Measure ½ cup cumin seeds and set aside.
  2. Heat a small skillet or frying pan until its hot on medium-low to medium heat. Ensure that the pan is heavy and thick bottomed.
  3. Add the cumin seeds in the pan.
  4. Dry roast over low to medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often to avoid uneven roasting of the cumin seeds.
  5. Turn off heat and remove half a portion of the seeds with a spoon. Set these lightly roasted cumin aside to cool.
  6. Switch on the heat and continue roasting the remaining cumin seeds on low to medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes or until fragrant and browned.
  7. Set aside these roasted cumin seeds on a plate to cool.

Make Everyday Cumin Powder

  1. Once cooled, grind the lightly roasted cumin seeds to a fine powder in a spice-grinder or mixer-grinder.
  2. Store in an airtight container.

Make Roasted Cumin Powder for Chaat

  1. Similarly grind the further roasted cumin seeds to a fine powder.
  2. Store in a small airtight jar or a spice container.

Storage

  1. Store cumin powder in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.
  2. Use within 3 to 6 months. You can also store it in the refrigerator for a longer shelf-life.
  3. Opt to freeze for longer freshness.

How to Use

  1. Add cumin powder to soups, lentil dishes, vegetables, rice, curries, and salads.
  2. For chaat, use roasted cumin powder to enhance dahi vada, pani puri, bhel puri, dahi puri or sev puri with a smoky and nutty flavor.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.