**Curry Powder**: A blend of various spices commonly used in Indian cuisine, typically including turmeric, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, and chili peppers. It adds flavor and color to dishes like curries, stews, and soups.
**Rasam Powder**: A spice blend used in South Indian cuisine to prepare rasam, a tangy and spicy soup-like dish made with tamarind juice, tomatoes, and spices such as black pepper, cumin, and coriander. Rasam powder enhances the flavor and aroma of the dish.
**Sambar Powder**: Another spice blend used in South Indian cooking, particularly in preparing sambar, a lentil-based vegetable stew. Sambar powder typically contains spices like coriander, cumin, fenugreek, mustard seeds, and red chili peppers, among others.
**Curry Leaves Powder**: Made from dried curry leaves, this powder is used as a seasoning in South Indian cuisine. It adds a distinctive flavor and aroma to dishes, similar to fresh curry leaves but with a more concentrated taste.
**Garlic Powder**: Made by dehydrating garlic cloves and then grinding them into a fine powder. It is used as a seasoning in various cuisines to add garlic flavor without the texture of fresh garlic. It's a convenient way to incorporate garlic flavor into dishes.
**Gunpowder**: While not a culinary ingredient, gunpowder is a mixture of saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal, historically used as a propellant in firearms and explosives. However, in the culinary world, "gunpowder" might refer to a type of spice blend used in South Indian cuisine, also known as "gunpowder chutney" or "idli podi." This blend typically contains roasted lentils, spices, and sometimes dried coconut, and is often served as a condiment for dosas, idlis, and other South Indian dishes.