Skip to content
FriendsPantry

South Indian · Indian

Ellu podi (sesame powder)

Vegetarian

எள்ளுப் பொடி · eḷḷup poṭi

Sesame seeds, urad dal and dried chillies roasted and ground with asafoetida and salt into a nutty, oily powder. It is the base of ellu sadam (sesame rice) and is also eaten with idli and gingelly oil.

Ellu podi (sesame powder) is a South Indian condiment, ready in about 35 minutes and made with sesame seeds and dried whole chillies. It serves 10 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking

No licensed photograph of this dish yet.

Prep
3 min
Cook
12 min
Rest
20 min
Total
35 min
Serves
10
Level
Easy
Calories
72

Ingredients

10 servings (about 14 g)

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Pick over the sesame (opens in a new tab) for grit; if it is dusty, wash and drain it and dry on a cloth first. Heat a heavy frying pan over medium-low heat and roast the urad (opens in a new tab) dal, stirring, for 4–5 minutes until golden. Tip out.

  2. Step 2

    Add the oil and roast the chillies for 1–2 minutes until crisp; add the asafoetida (opens in a new tab) for a few seconds. Tip out.

  3. Step 3

    Roast the sesame seeds (opens in a new tab) in the dry pan, stirring constantly, for 3–4 minutes until they pop, swell and smell nutty (white seeds turn pale gold). Take them off the heat immediately; sesame burns within seconds.

  4. Step 4

    Cool completely. Grind the chillies, dal, salt and jaggery to a powder, then add the sesame (opens in a new tab) and grind in 3–4 short pulses only, to a coarse, slightly oily powder. Long grinding turns sesame into paste.

    Spices being ground in a mortar and pestle
    How it looks · Photo: https://kaboompics.com/ on Pexels

  5. Step 5

    Store in an airtight jar. For ellu sadam, mix 2 tbsp podi and 2 tsp gingelly (opens in a new tab) oil into a cup of cooked rice.

About this dish

Origin
Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, India · Commonly attributedSesame podis are made across South India; ellu sadam with this podi is a traditional temple and festival rice in Tamil Nadu. Black sesame is preferred for offerings.More food from India
Dish
Lunch · Breakfast · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
Cooking method
Toasted
Taste
nutty, spicy (chilli heat), savoury, earthy
Diet
Vegan · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Keto-style · Low-carb
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Keto-style · Low-carb · DASH-style
Without the optional extras: No added sugarWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead · Batch cooking · Portable / lunchbox · Festive & celebration
Cook more with
Sesame seeds · Dried whole chillies · Black gram (urad dal) · Asafoetida
Techniques
Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting)

Allergens

  • May contain: Wheatfrom asafoetida
  • May contain: Glutenfrom asafoetida
  • Contains: Sesamefrom sesame seeds

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

72 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 15 g · recipe makes 10

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 14%
  • Carbohydrate 23%
  • Fat 63%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy72 kcal498 kcal
Protein2.6 g18.1 g
Carbohydrate4.5 g31.2 g
Net carbohydrate2.6 g18.1 g
Sugars——
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre1.9 g13.1 g
Fat5.4 g37 g
Saturated fat0.7 g5 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium196 mg1354 mg
Salt equivalent0.5 g3.4 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
96 mg
Calcium
102 mg
Iron
1.8 mg
Magnesium
44 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
8 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
17 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: jaggery / palm sugar.
  • Not counted (tiny amounts or “to taste”): asafoetida.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Pulse, don't run the grinder: the oil in sesame starts to release almost immediately.
  • Black sesame gives a deeper, slightly bitter flavour; white sesame is milder.

Common mistakes

  • Over-roasting sesame until dark brown, which tastes acrid.
  • Grinding to a paste.

Serve with

  • Ellu sadam: toss with rice, gingelly oil and a mustard-seed and curry-leaf tempering.
  • Sprinkle over idli, dosa, or plain rice with ghee.

Food safety

  • Contains sesame, a major allergen.
  • Use a dry spoon to keep the powder dry.

Storage

  • Keeps 1 month airtight at room temperature, 2–3 months in the fridge; sesame oil turns rancid with heat and light.

Variations

  • Nuvvula podi (Andhra): Adds cumin and garlic and is hotter.
  • Ellu milagai podi: Half sesame, half lentils, as an idli podi.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Goes with

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in step 1

Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

You might also like