Today’s recipe is one of the pastes that were once a must in my kitchen, along with ginger garlic paste. I always use to stock up my refrigerator and the freezer with roasted onion paste. And I did not like cooking curries without it. This paste is versatile and goes in to both gravy and dry curries that required masala.
Non-veg curries are a must in my house and with this paste, cooking was a breeze. I use it in shorva, pulusu (tamarind based gravy curry) and in seafood dry curries. You can use the paste even in vegetable curries.
I like the taste of the gravies when the onion is roasted and then ground to paste rather than grinding the raw onion, and then sautéing it in oil. Moreover, using this paste cuts down the cooking time of the curry.
One of U’s aunts makes this paste. She freezes it into cubes in an ice tray and uses it as and when required. Few years ago after visiting this aunt, athamma (mother-in-law) gave me this idea.
Ever since, I have been making it. But in the last year and half, we have cut down on non-veg curries and are eating more grilled meats and seafood. So, I gradually stopped stocking up on this paste.
I make the onion paste by roasting chopped onion in oil and then grinding it to a paste. I also throw in all the spices that I usually use in my cooking when sautéing the onions. This paste is a good base for any curry and I like the texture of the gravies with this paste more than when prepared without the paste. It also works as a quick fix to thicken the gravies. Paste stays fresh for at least a week in the refrigerator.
📖 Recipe
Roasted Onion Curry Paste
Equipment
- Knife and cutting board
- Pan and spatula
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoon Oil
- 1 large Onion chopped or 2 cups chopped Onion
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- ½ - 1 teaspoon Methi ~ Fenugreek Seeds I used 1 tsp.
- 2 Cloves
- 4 Cardamoms I usually use only the seeds but this time I used it as it is
- ½ inch Cinnamon Stick
- 4 Garlic Cloves or 1 tablespoon Chopped/sliced Garlic Cloves opt.
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- Turmeric
- ¾ medium Tomatoes or ¾ - 1 cup chopped Tomato
Instructions
- Grind cumin, methi, cloves, cardamoms and cinnamon to a powder. This step can be skipped if using an Indian blender or a powerful blender that can grind the spices to a paste along with the onions.
- Take a pan and heat oil.
- If using spice powder, skip this step. I skipped this step as I was using a spice powder. Add cumin, methi, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and let the spices roast for a few seconds. If following this step, skip step 5.
- Add onions and sauté until light brown. This would take about 5 minutes.
- If using spice powder, add the powder and mix well. Saute for a few seconds. Reduce the heat if the spices burn.
- Add garlic, salt turmeric and sauté for a minute or two.
- Add tomatoes and cook for another two minutes until the tomatoes are mushy. If required, reduce the flame to medium – medium high to avoid burning of the mixture.
- Continue cooking the mixture for another 2-3 minutes until all the moisture is gone and the mixture is nicely roasted.
- Let the mixture cool and grind to a fine paste. Add water if required, to make the paste. I used about ½ cup of water to make the paste.
- Store in a glass or plastic container and refrigerate. It stays fresh for at least a week. If freezing, it can be frozen in an ice tray. Once the paste freezes, remove from the tray and store in a freezer bag. These cubes can be directly added to the curry or can be thawed in the microwave by heating it for 30-60 seconds.
- I usually freeze the paste in a small container. When needed, the paste can be microwaved for a minute to thaw and used in the curry. But what I usually do is, leave it out on the countertop for an hour OR keep it in the fridge the night before to thaw the paste. Once thawed, this paste stays fresh for at least 2-4 days in the fridge. There are times when I have stored it in the fridge for up to a week after thawing it.
How to use the paste:
- When cooking the curry, add this paste after sautéing onions and ginger garlic paste. Or can add it along with ginger garlic paste. Depending on the quantity of the curry, use 1 - 2 tablespoon of the paste.
- In Chicken shorva recipe, use half the onions listed in the recipe and use 3-4 tablespoons of this paste. Also use half the yogurt listed. Add this paste after frying ginger garlic paste.
Notes
- Spices - The spices that go into this paste are subjective to once preference. For convenience, I also add the whole garam masala to the paste mixture and this way I do not have to prepare garam masala powder separately.
- Tomato - I sometimes use tomato and sometimes I do not, depending on my mood. If not using the tomato, adjust the spices accordingly or use less whole garam masala for the paste.
- Freezing tip - If freezing the paste in a container, do not fill more than up to ⅔ – ¾ of the container. Food tends to expand & increase in volume once frozen. Always leave at least ¼th of the container empty, giving the good enough room to expand when frozen.
themadscientistskitchen says
Love the paste. I am making this one.Thanks. will stop me rushin around like a headless chicken the days I am late.
sreevalli says
Very useful post.. Bookmarked it & I'm going to try it ..
PJ says
Very useful post Usha.Must be a delicious base to the gravies...
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Lovely! Such a useful post...I am sure this will be such a life saver in a bust evening!
Mireille says
this looks fabulous - I am sure it will be great in soups also
Pradnya says
this is a very useful recipe with spices added in...lovely description
Pavani says
This paste sure makes gravy curries creamy and delicious. Thanks for sharing this.
Suma Gandlur says
I assumed it was just a basic paste but the way you have incorporated all the spices into it, it makes north Indian style curries a breeze.
Sony's kitchen says
Useful tip Usha!! awesum clicks.
harini says
Very useful post! I heard this is what they use in restaurants too.
MySpicyKitchen says
I didn't know that restaurants use similar paste. Since to know, Harini.
Srivalli says
Such an useful post Usha, we used to make this too, though not with so many spices..but it used to be so helpful!..
MySpicyKitchen says
I don't use any other spices, Valli. Just to lazy to make separate garam masala powder, so add everything in this paste itself.