LC (or anybody else interested), the photo I posted above shows a 100g Box of "Eastern" brand "Fish Masala", with the following ingredients Kashmiri Chilly (sic). Coriander, Turmeric, Salt, Mustard. Fenugreek. Garlic, Dry Ginger. Eastern brand should be available in the UK but you could use other masala blend with the same or similar ingredient listing. Alternatively, I will provide the formula in grams of individual spices if you can't get a suitable base masala upon which to build.
There is also a piece of paper with my scribblings on it. This is where I extrapolated a proposed Hybrid blend after analysing 8 different commercial Basaar / Kashmiri products and online recipes and formula for Kashmiri Masalas. What I noticed about the Fish Masala was that the listed ingredients were in common and in order with my Basaar research. So it only remained to see what was missing and as these were minor quantity spices it shouldn't be too difficult to add them in and create a Basaar mix. What I found yesterday was that it worked and my home made Basaar concoction, developed from the Fish Masala, was the same as commercially sold Kashmiri masala products.
From recent posts LC, I understand you are not a fan of Garam Masala in Mixed Powder or Base Gravy, but I did note that 7 of the missing ingredients are basically GM.
Cumin, Bay Leaf, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Black Pepper, Cloves and Nutmeg. My spreadsheet calculations and best guess extrapolations suggested that between 3 and 4 teaspoons of GM added to the Fish Masala was 95 % of a Basaar done.
There were 4 or 5 other minor ingredients still missing. Paprika, Roasted Cumin seed, Fennel and Amchur. There is also some uncertainty about the listing of Fenugreek on the Eastern packet. Is it Fenugreek seed or Kasoori Methi? To cover this I could add a small amount of each. So to finish, I lightly roasted 1 tsp of Cumin seed and then ground it with 1/2 tsp of Fennel seed, 1/2 tsp of Fenugreek seed. I added 2 tsp of Paprika, 1/2 tsp of Amchur and a good pinch of Methi leaf and added it to the Fish Masala and Garam Masala.
I didn't, but if you wanted to you could then rub the whole lot through with possibly up to about 20 mls of Mustard Oil. This would make it clump and have the oiliness of commercial Basaar. I figured you could add that in as you used it.
So my final formula for Homemade Kashmiri Masala / Basaar / Bassar is as follows.
1 X 100g box of Eastern Fish Masala (or similar)
1 TBSP standard Garam Masala (individual spices listed above)
2 tsp Sweet Paprika
1 tsp ground Kasoori Methi
1 tsp lightly roasted and ground Cumin seed
1/2 tsp ground Fennel seed
1/2 tsp ground Fenugreek seed
1/2 tsp Amchur powder
Roast Cumin Seeds.
Grind whole seeds and Methi leaf.
Combine and mix all ingredients.
Optional: Rub through with up to 20 mls of Mustard Oil.
Note:
Dagar Phool is not a known Basaar ingredient but the addition of it in the newly made commercial product was welcome. This product also had extra Chilli heat by the addition of Hot Chilli Powder as well as Kashmiri Chilli.
Fish masala substitute: Makes 100g.
50 g Kashmiri Chilli
20 g Coriander
10 g Turmeric
5 g Salt
5 g Mustard Powder
5 g Garlic Powder
5 g Ginger Powder