Indian Cooking FAQ – Questions from our readers! Can I use curry powder as a substitute for coriander powder?
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Dear Big Apple Curry,
I wanted to email you to let you know how the easy Indian-style grilled chicken recipe went. It turned out super moist and flavorful, but not exactly what I expected. I think this is because I made changes based on what I had in my pantry. I bought garam masala and didn’t have ground coriander, so I used a curry powder that had ground coriander as the main ingredient. I ran out of cayenne pepper so could only add 1/16 of a teaspoon, so had to sub crushed red pepper for the rest. I used bone-in (skin removed) chicken leg quarters, which I roasted in the oven for an hour. Otherwise, the rest of the ingredients were the same. Oh, and I marinated it for 4 hours.
Like I said, the chicken was moist, but after roasting it for an hour, the only flavors that came through were the garam masala and curry powder. I’m a big fan of aromatics like garlic and onion and spicy foods, so I was a little let down only because all I could taste were “warm” spices. I felt like it was missing something. Next time I would add twice as much garlic and maybe garlic powder, and not roast it. I’m guessing that when you quick cook it (on a grill) that the flavors of the marinade are more intact? Any tips? 🙂
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Dear Reader!
1. Nope, sorry! Unfortunately, curry powder cannot be substituted for coriander powder
- Ground coriander is an ingredient in all curry powders, but is in equal measure with the other ingredients — if you taste plain ground coriander, you will see it has a light citrus type taste while curry powder is a more pungent taste (it includes spices like turmeric for instance)
- Garam masala is the combination of very fragrant spices (cinnamon, clove, cardamom, black peppercorn, etc.) so you want to use it sparingly to get the exact right balance — otherwise it can be the only thing one tastes in a dish — I typically add only 1/4 teaspoon of garam masala for a curry that feeds 4 people.
- If you add two strong spice blends (garam masala and curry powder) to any dish, that’s all you will end up tasting. In any Indian dish I make, I will never combine the two.
- In the future, if you’re in the same situation, just choose the garam masala and forget the curry powder. I typically use curry powder for things like curried turkey burgers or a Thai coconut chicken curry. For classic Indian dishes I typically use whole garam masala (meaning whole cinnamon, etc.) or ground garam masala (like you used). If you’re interested see my posts “What is Curry?” and “The Art of Indian Cooking”.
2. Yes! Red chilli can be substituted for cayenne pepper
It’s absolutely fine to substitute red chilli flakes for the ground cayenne powder — I routinely use red chilli flakes or crushed red chilli; I only suggest cayenne because I figure it’s what most people will have in their pantries. All you need to do is adjust the heat if you want the chicken to have more kick.
3. Marinating the Indian way
Marinating it for 4 hours is just fine — the great thing about Indian marinades is you don’t have to marinate overnight, as even a couple of hours can do the trick. Further to #1, if you roasted the chicken in the oven for an hour, it will only intensify the overpowering garam masala and curry powder flavors. Bottom line is next time, choose the garam masala and leave the curry powder on the shelf and you should have success with the dish.
