Exploring 8 Delicious Alternatives to Amchur (Mango) Powder

Flavorful, tropical, tangy, fruity, and almost like a blast in your mouth-that’s what amchur powder can do for your palette. What was once a staple of Indian cuisine has now infiltrated the markets and cuisines all over the world. It is now used in many kinds of cuisines all over the world.

However, imagine a scenario: you enter your kitchen to cook your favorite curry, and as you open the kitchen cabinet, bam! You have run out of amchur powder. Now, what do you do?

You either play a sad Bollywood tune and dance to it while crying, or you think like an adult and find its substitute.

But, but, but… No buts!

You are an adult and you need to start scavenging your pantry for a great substitute, as we are sure there are many. For such situations, we have made a list of substitutes for you.

However, before finding the substitutes, we need to understand the exact flavor of amchur and its uses so that we can match the relevant substitutes.

What Is Dry Mango Powder or Amchur Powder?

This powder’s acidic and tangy flavor comes from the usage of dried, unripe green mangoes. It is just a powdered dried green mango which brings the acid to balance the effects of heat, salt, and sugar on foods.

What Flavor Does It Have?

Unripe mangoes are slowly dried in the sun until they are nearly dry, at which point they are ground to a fine powder to create amchur. It has a pleasant aroma that is reminiscent of a dusty box of tropical fruit. The flavor is much more intriguing: slightly sour but not too so, with an unexpectedly rich sweetness that calls for a savory accompaniment. Like mangoes with all of their flesh, it gives the tongue a good twist.

How Would One Use It?

Amchur is primarily used in Indian cuisine, and it appears to be most commonly available there. Many okra curries and legume meals require it; it’s a staple in chaat masalas; and it contributes to the flavor of chutneys, pickles, marinades, and intricate, multi-layered curries. But its applications don’t end there. Try lightly roasting some nuts with some amchur and a little oil. Or include it in your upcoming fruit salad. Because of its fruity flavor and distinct departure from its Indian origins, it goes perfectly with pork. It also makes a tasty rub for baked chicken or fish. The flavor is too delicate for such high heat, so I wouldn’t suggest grilling or broiling with it.

How do we replace such a flavor?

Amchur is more difficult to find in the United States than some of the more popular spices that can be purchased in the grocery store. You can purchase a pack online or try specialty spice shops and Indian grocery stores. But you’ll need an amchur alternative if you can’t find the spice in the shop and don’t have time to wait for an internet order. We’ve compiled a list of our best substitutes so you can complete any recipe that calls for the original item. They might not quite replicate the flavor of amchur powder, but they won’t taste out of place in any Southeast Asian or Indian cuisine.

What can I use in a recipe instead of amchur powder?

If you need to replace amchur powder in cooking, lemon juice, tajin, tamarind powder, citric acid powder, dried pomegranate seeds (anardana), loomi, or sumac are your best options. Each of these ingredients can be used to give meals a zesty, acidic flavor.

Factors to Take Into Account When Choosing A Good Mango Powder Substitute

• Acidity Level of the substitute
• Moisture level since amchur is dry
• Purpose of use

8 Best Substitutes For Amchur(Mango) Powder

Amchur Substitutes	Use
Powdered citric acid	Soups, stews, curries, spice mix
Lemon or Lime juice	Stews, soups,stir fried veggies, curries
Anardana	Salads, wrap fillings, curries
Tamarind pulp/powder	Curries, soups, stews, salads
Sumac	Salads, stir fried veggies
Green unripe mango	Meat stews, meat curries, soups
Chaat Masala	Salads, spice mixes
Tajin	Salads, spice mixes, stir fried veggies

1. Powdered citric acid

Powdered citric acid is an excellent option if you are looking for a substitute for amchur powder. Either crystalline or powdered forms of citric acid are available. If you have crystals, make sure to use a mortar and pestle to grind them into a fine powder.

1 tsp amchur: 1 tsp citric acid

2. Lime or lemon juice

I believe this is the simplest substitute unless you are preparing a spice blend or a specific meal that should avoid additional moisture. If you run out of amchur, you can use this in its place. A jar of fresh lemon juice is always on hand! sour or tart flavor, in my opinion, is a great option to replace mango powder.

Since lemons and limes can range in acidity, it is difficult to provide an exact substitute ratio. In general, 1 teaspoon amchur to 1/2 to 1 teaspoon lemon/lime juice should work.

Lemon juice should only be added at the end of cooking because it loses flavor over time. One or two teaspoons of lemon juice usually won’t have a significant impact on the dish, but keep in mind that using it will contribute additional liquid throughout the recipe, so you may need to account for this.

3. Powdered pomegranate seeds or anardana

Anardana translates to “to ground pomegranate seeds.” So, dried pomegranate seeds are used to make anardana powder. It offers a flavor that is similarly sour and tangy to dry mango powder.

Although it is less frequent than amchur, it is frequently found in Indian kitchens, so if you frequently prepare Indian food, you might have it on hand.

Despite its exotic-sounding name, the substance is only dried pomegranate powder. Indian cuisine holds it in high regard as a superb ingredient for giving curries a tangy flavor, despite it not being so well-liked in western cooking.

If you can’t find this product in a store, you can use the dried seeds from a fresh pomegranate and grind them into a powder. Use anardana sparingly to prevent the dish from becoming too sweet because it is sweeter than amchur powder.

One Anardana powder equals One teaspoon of amchur.

4. Tamarind powder and paste

Tamarind is an option that has a comparable acidity. It serves as the key component of the well-known brown chutney that is eaten with samosas. It is most frequently used as a souring agent in various South Indian recipes. It tastes really harsh. It’s also possible to utilize tamarind pulp.

The southernmost regions of India and Southeast Asian cuisine are big fans of tamarind fruits, which can be dried and processed into tamarind powder. Although the spice is rather sour on its own, it tastes wonderful when added to fish and vegetable curries.

Because it is a powder, tamarind powder typically works better as an amchur alternative than lemon juice. It also has a faintly sweet undertone that is comparable to amchur powder.

The main issue with tamarind powder is that it can be difficult to find in places like the United States and isn’t always sold in stores. If you do manage to get some, use it carefully because the powder has a tendency to overpower a meal.

Amchur can also be substituted with tamarind paste, but only in a pinch. If you choose to utilize the paste, reduce the amount by fifty percent.

If using it in place of tamarind, I would begin with 1/2 tamarind: 1 amchur.

5. Sumac

The wild sumac flower berries are used to make sumac. They are first dried and then powdered to produce the spice’s vivid red color. It tastes similar to lemon juice and is acidic and tart. Sumac can be used in dressings, to give astringency to meat, poultry, and fish, as well as for a variety of other dishes. If you need to substitute something for amchur quickly, use this spice sparingly.

1 tsp sumac: 1 tsp amchur

6. Green/Unripe Mango

Considering that amchur powder is dried mango powder prepared from green, immature mangoes. Therefore, you can use the spice’s original source! Green mangoes are frequently found at grocery stores. A few tiny pieces can be pureed to create green mango pulp.

It would be best utilized in soups or other meals with chutney, since it will add a little moisture to the food.

It’s also possible to powder dried green mango segments.

7. Chaat masala

Amchur is a key component of the spice mixture known as chaat masala. The spice mixture is frequently used in chaats and is also delicious sprinkled on fruit.

Although it cannot replace amchur, it can be utilized when cooking a dish like chaat. When modifying your recipe, be sure to take the extra black salt into consideration.

8. Tajin

Salt, lime, and chili make up tajin powder. There is no denying the presence of the acidic or sour flavor. It is feasible to utilize, even if I don’t strongly advise it as a replacement. You could modify your recipe to allow for employing this substitution because chili and salt are two ingredients found in many Indian dishes.

After reading this, I am sure you would never run out of ideas to substitute amchur powder whenever you decide to cook something that needs amchur powder.