Fresh Goda Masala – Easy to Make at Home

Fresh Goda Masala is easy to make at home – and once you have done it, you will likely never go back to store-bought again! In Maharashtra, India, folks use this all-purpose spice mixture on an everyday basis. They put Goda Masala (Goad-aa Mus-aa-laa) in a host of different vegetables, Amti (Aam-tee; typically made with Toor Dal), Usal (‘Us’ as in ‘pussy-cat’, ‘al’ as in ‘dull’: Us-al) made with various sprouted beans), etc. It also lends its distinctive flavor to the well-known, special-occasion Maharashtrian rice dish, the Masaley Bhaat (Mus-aa-lay Bhaath)

I learned how to make it from my Mom, who always made fresh Goda Masala every few months. While growing up, I often wondered why the same dish made by Mom always tasted better than when many other people made it. When I mentioned this to Mom, she just laughed. I realized much later what she didn’t want to say… that it was probably because of the fresh and aromatic flavors of her home-made Goda Masala!

What is Goda Masala made from?

Even if you are not especially familiar with Maharashtrian food, you will likely recognize the names of most of the spices listed as ingredients: coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon, black pepper and so on. Aren’t they the same spices you see in a wide variety of recipes for Indian food? Aren’t they also used to make Garam Masala (Gur-um Mus-aa-laa). Yes! You are indeed, spot on!

So, what makes Goda Masala different? The details, of course! Besides having a few extra ingredients, such as sesame seeds, coconut and nutmeg, there is one major difference. To make Goda Masala, one must lightly roast the spices before grinding them into a slightly coarse powder. The roasting releases the flavor and aroma compounds trapped in the spices, and also gives it a lightly toasted flavor and texture. The delightfully toasty aroma is a little heady, and the Marathi word, “Khamang!” (Khum-ung- rhymes with “sung.”), describes it perfectly. By contrast, Garam Masala is typically made by grinding raw – i.e., un-roasted spices, and has a completely different texture and aroma profile. I’m always fascinated by how even small differences in preparation can produce results that are so dramatically different!

Use Shah Jeera in Goda Masala: Not Caraway & Not Nigella (Kalonji)

I am always amazed at how much confusion abounds regarding these three spices. Anyone who has seen and tasted all three can recognize and distinguish between them instantly, without any confusion whatsoever. I want to scream when I see websites that boldly proclaim Shah Jeera to be the same as Caraway, and others that equally confidently proclaim it to be the same as Nigella (Kalonji)!. They are most certainly NOT the same spice!

These three spices look and taste completely different from each other, so the confusion seems rather illogical. Botanically, they do not even belong to the same genus Shah Jeera ( also called Kashmiri Jeera) is Bunium persicum, Caraway is Carum carvi, and Nigella (also called Kalonji) is Nigella sativa. See Recipe Notes for a picture depicting all three spices side-by-side.

What we need to use for making Goda Masala is Shah Jeera, not Caraway or Nigella! If you use Caraway or Nigella, the spice mix you create will most definitely not taste like Goda Masala, that’s for sure! You can easily recognize Shah Jeera by its very distinctive, rather delicate appearance – it looks like a darker, longer and skinnier version of cumin. Taste wise, it is in its own league, as indicated by its very name- Shah (royal)!

How to Grind the Roasted Spices?

In the old days, when there were no electric blenders and grinders, folks would manually pound the roasted spices in large Mortar and Pestle contraptions. This is called Khal-Batta in Marathi: ‘Khull’ (rhymes with ‘dull’), is the Mortar; ‘But-thaa’ (‘th’ as in ‘think’), is the pestle. Both, typically made of solid iron, are very heavy, so the pounding required serious arm muscle, as one might imagine.

Mom used to do that too until she bought an electric grinder. Very quickly, though, she realized that she would have to make some changes in how she made Goda Masala. Why? The traditional recipe calls for roasting all the spices in a bit of oil, before mixing and pounding to a powder. Well, that is just not going to work easily with an electric grinder. How come? The high speeds at which the grinder blades rotate makes the oil and the spices just clump together. No more grinding can happen after that – everything is just stuck on the bottom and sides of the grinder! Hmmmm…..!

So – how to resolve this “sticky” problem?

Mom’s solution? Dry-roast everything – no oil, no clumping! This approach works very well for all of the spices except sesame seeds and coconut. Both of these are oil-rich and difficult to grind without clumping. So, Mom did not mix the roasted sesame seeds and roasted coconut with the remaining spices during grinding. Her strategy works really well and I have described it in detail in the recipe directions.

“Fresh” Taste – for how long?

The Goda Masala stays fresh-tasting for 2-3 months in the pantry, when stored in a dark jar, away from direct sunlight. Mom typically made just enough each time to last her for a couple of months. However, if you don’t use it a lot, it’s better to store it in the freezer. I recommend double-bagging it, to preserve freshness for much longer (See Recipe Notes for details). Mine is always in a glass jar in the freezer. When I need some for an authentic taste of Maharashtra, out comes the bottle!

Special Diets

This fresh Goda Masala recipe is vegan, gluten-free, and soy-free. It is not nut-free, since it has dried coconut. You can omit the coconut and still have a lovely spice mix for making a wide variety of Maharashtrian food.

So…. maybe it’s time for you to make fresh Goda Masala. I plan to soon post several recipes that you can use it in. Be on the look-out for my Masale Bhaath recipe – I plan to post that in the next few days! Any dish you make with your home-made Goda Masala will be far superior to one made with a store-bought Masala. After all, who knows how long that package sat on the grocery store shelves before you picked it up?

Make the Masala, inhale its delightfully heady aroma…….and have fun cooking with it to prepare delicious Maharashtrian dishes, such as my recently posted Kobee Bhaath and Matkichi Usal

Do leave a review and rating, I’d love to hear from you.

Enjoy!