Curry Powder: What It Is, Nutrition Facts and Curry Powder vs Garam Masala

Curry powder is a ground spice blend sold to season curry-style dishes. This guide answers what is curry powder, gives USDA curry powder nutrition per teaspoon, offers a fair answer to whether curry powder is healthy, compares curry powder vs garam masala, and explains what FDA labeling rules and recall records say about these blends.

Peptide Labs does not sell curry powder or any spice blend. This article is general food information, not medical advice.

What is curry powder?

What is curry powder? It is a ready-mixed, ground seasoning that gives a dish a warm, often golden flavor in one step. The mix changes by maker and by recipe, so two jars labeled curry powder can taste quite different. Mild versions lean on earthy and citrusy seeds, while hot or Madras-style versions add more chili.

Spices often found in curry powder include:

• Turmeric: the root spice behind the yellow color of many blends.
• Coriander seed: mild and citrusy; see our coriander guide.
• Cumin: warm and earthy, one of the defining flavors.
• Fenugreek: slightly bitter and maple-like; see our fenugreek guide.
• Chili or cayenne: sets the heat; see our cayenne guide.
• Ginger and pepper: add bite; see our ginger and black pepper guides.
• Sweet warm spices: some blends add cardamom, cinnamon or cloves.
• Seeds for texture: a few blends include mustard seed or nigella seeds.

Curry powder is not the same as curry leaves, which come from a different plant, or curry paste, a wet blend that often contains oil and salt.

Curry powder nutrition per teaspoon

USDA SR Legacy, the database this site uses for food values (April 2018 release), has one curry powder entry (FDC 170924). The table shows one USDA teaspoon of it beside several spices that commonly go into it, each at the teaspoon weight USDA lists. Percent Daily Values (%DV) use FDA reference amounts.

The USDA numbers are small because a teaspoon of a dry spice weighs only 2 to 4 g. Per USDA teaspoon, curry powder has 1.1 g of fiber and 0.17 milligrams of manganese, 4% and 7% of the Daily Value. Its sodium is 1 milligram per teaspoon in USDA data, which shows that the USDA sample was not a salted blend. The USDA chili powder entry, another blend, has 77 milligrams of sodium per teaspoon, a reminder that some seasoning mixes do contain salt. The label on a given jar is the place to check its own numbers.

Is curry powder healthy?

Is curry powder healthy? It is a seasoning used in small amounts, so its job is flavor rather than nutrition, and the USDA values above are modest. What changes the picture is what else is in the jar and the dish. A blend with added salt contributes sodium; FDA puts the Daily Value for sodium at less than 2,300 milligrams and calls 20% DV or more per serving high. Seasoning with a salt-free blend is one way to add flavor without adding sodium, and our low sodium guide lists foods that fit alongside.

NCCIH says curcumin, a major component of turmeric, gives the spice its yellow color, and that we don’t know enough to definitively conclude whether turmeric or curcumin is beneficial for any health purposes. Our turmeric safety guide, turmeric tea guide and guide to turmeric with pepper cover what NCCIH and other sources say.

Curry powder vs garam masala

Curry powder vs garam masala is a common kitchen question, because both are ground blends tied to Indian-style cooking. They are not interchangeable, and neither has one fixed recipe:

• Color and base: curry powder is usually yellow from turmeric and built on coriander, cumin and fenugreek; garam masala is brown and built on warm spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and pepper.
• Heat: many curry powders include chili; garam masala gets its warmth mostly from pepper and cloves, though recipes differ.
• Timing: cooks usually add curry powder early, frying it in oil, and stir garam masala in near the end or sprinkle it on top.
• Data: USDA SR Legacy has no garam masala entry; see our garam masala guide.

Reading a curry powder label

• What counts as a spice: FDA’s labeling rule, 21 CFR 101.22, defines a spice as an aromatic vegetable substance whose significant function in food is seasoning rather than nutritional.
• Spice on the ingredient list: under the same FDA rule, spices may be declared simply as spice, so a jar may list spices without naming each one.
• Spice and coloring: FDA’s rule says paprika, turmeric, saffron and other spices that are also colors must be declared as spice and coloring unless they are listed by name.
• Salt: FDA’s rule requires any salt used as an ingredient to be declared as salt, so a salted blend shows it on the ingredient list.
• GRAS status: FDA’s list in 21 CFR 182.10 names coriander, cumin, fenugreek, ginger, black pepper, cayenne pepper and turmeric among spices generally recognized as safe for their intended use; that is a regulatory status, not a health claim.
• Wheat and allergens: FDA lists wheat and peanuts among the nine major food allergens. FDA enforcement reports record a 2011 Class II recall of curry seasonings because whole wheat was not declared on the label, so the ingredient list and Contains statement are worth reading.
• Gluten: NIDDK notes that many foods are naturally gluten-free without additives or some seasonings, and advises reading labels for wheat, barley and rye. A gluten-free label means under 20 parts per million gluten, as NIDDK notes. Our foods with gluten guide lists other sources.

Lead recalls of curry powder: what FDA records show

FDA enforcement reports list several recalls of specific curry powder products because of lead. In recalls that began on August 2, 2016, FDA records state that product samples of curry powders and curry seasonings tested positive for lead, and that the ground turmeric ingredient used to make them also tested positive. Recalls of other curry powders began on December 7, 2016, and in October 2018 two more firms recalled curry powders over high or elevated lead levels, per FDA records. FDA classified those recalls as Class I, which 21 CFR 7.3 defines as a situation with a reasonable probability of serious adverse health consequences or death.

More recently, an FDA enforcement report shows a Class II recall that began on January 28, 2025, for a Madras curry powder sold in three package sizes, after FDA records showed lead at 5.48 and 2.59 milligrams per kilogram in two lots; the recall was expanded to all lots. These FDA-listed recalls covered specific products and lots, and FDA records do not say that curry powder in general contains lead.

• FDA’s general position: FDA’s page on lead in food says lead can enter food from the environment where it is grown or processed, that no level of lead exposure has been identified as safe, and that the very young are particularly vulnerable.
• Detection is not avoidance: the same FDA page says testing results that detect lead do not necessarily mean a food should be avoided.
• Monitoring: FDA says its testing includes colored spices sold in the U.S., and that imported foods with levels of toxic elements that may be unsafe can be placed on Import Alert 99-42.
• If you are worried: in its March 2024 ground cinnamon alert, FDA advised talking to a healthcare provider if someone may have been exposed to elevated lead, noting that most people have no obvious immediate symptoms. Our garam masala guide covers that FDA alert.

Cooking with curry powder

• Bloom it in fat: stir curry powder into hot oil with onions for a short time before adding liquid; the raw, dusty taste cooks off and the aroma opens up.
• Easy pairings: lentils, chickpeas, roasted cauliflower, sweet potato, a sauce made with coconut milk, or basmati rice.
• Store it well: keep the jar tightly closed, away from heat, steam and light.

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about a label? Contact us or read our Buyer’s Guide. Food comes first; follow the label and ask a healthcare provider before starting a supplement, especially if you take medicines, are pregnant or have a food allergy. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Last reviewed October 2026.

Related guides: Garam Masala: What It Is, Ingredients, Substitutes and Is It Healthy, Coriander Seeds: Benefits, USDA Nutrition, Uses and Safety, Turmeric Tea: Benefits, Research, Golden Milk and Safety.