• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
My Tasty Curry
  • Recipe Index
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Lunch and Dinner
    • Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
    • Indian Recipes
      • Indian Chinese Recipes
      • Indian Cooking Basics
      • Indian desserts
      • Indian Main Course
      • Breads
      • Chutneys Pickles and Condiments
    • Air Fryer Recipes
    • One Pot Meals
    • Instant Pot Recipes
    • Salad Recipes
    • Sandwich Recipes
    • Soup Recipes
    • International Recipes
      • Dessert Recipes
      • Italian Recipes
      • Mediterranean Recipes
  • About Rekha
  • Meal Plans
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Lunch and Dinner
    • Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
    • Indian Recipes
      • Indian Chinese Recipes
      • Indian Cooking Basics
      • Indian desserts
      • Indian Main Course
      • Breads
      • Chutneys Pickles and Condiments
    • Air Fryer Recipes
    • One Pot Meals
    • Instant Pot Recipes
    • Salad Recipes
    • Sandwich Recipes
    • Soup Recipes
    • International Recipes
      • Dessert Recipes
      • Italian Recipes
      • Mediterranean Recipes
  • About Rekha
  • Meal Plans
  • connect with me

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • Recipes
      • Appetizers and Snacks
      • Lunch and Dinner
      • Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
      • Indian Recipes
        • Indian Chinese Recipes
        • Indian Cooking Basics
        • Indian desserts
        • Indian Main Course
        • Breads
        • Chutneys Pickles and Condiments
      • Air Fryer Recipes
      • One Pot Meals
      • Instant Pot Recipes
      • Salad Recipes
      • Sandwich Recipes
      • Soup Recipes
      • International Recipes
        • Dessert Recipes
        • Italian Recipes
        • Mediterranean Recipes
    • About Rekha
    • Meal Plans
  • connect with me

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Indian Recipes » Indian Street Food

    Onion Tomato Masala

    Mar 31, 2020 Modified: Nov 9, 2021 by Rekha Kakkar This post may contain affiliate links ·

    122 shares
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • WhatsApp
    Jump to Recipe

    Onion tomato masala, cooked with pantry staples, a perfect curry masala to make the base for many Indian curry recipes. You can make this vegan and freezer friendly curry paste to make most Indian curries.

    onion tomato masala

    If you find cooking Indian food is complicated and requires a lot of work, it is not. If you know certain methods and shortcuts you can cook delicious Indian food with some timesaving techniques. 

    One of these time-saving hacks is having basic curry pastes and cooked masala at hand. If you have a couple of basic cooked masala or curry paste, it is easy to cook. And you can make great tasting Indian food in minutes.

    If you have some knowledge of Indian curry recipes and compare the curry with other cuisines It requires you to make a curry base which is a sauce. It can be chunky for some gravies, smooth for others and extra smooth and creamy in some cases. 

    I have already shared my bhuna masala and makhani sauce (extra smooth made with boiled onions and tomatoes) here is another onion tomato masala (which is slightly chunky) This is ideal for semi-dry gravies, it works both for veg as well as non-veg dishes. 

    I prepare this masala with finely chopped onions and tomatoes. Unlike bhuna masala, I add ginger and green chillies in this one and garlic if I am using it. This chunky masala is perfect for dry veggies and semi-dry gravies.

    This is also perfect for tempering Indian dals. So with this trio of Indian onion tomato masala recipes, Bhuna masala, makhani masala I can prepare most of the Indian curry recipes easily at home.

    Onion tomato masala ready to store in freezer

    Ingredients for Tomato Onion Masala

    • Onions. Red onions or shallots are preferable otherwise use what you have
    • Tomatoes. Fresh or canned
    • Ginger - you can use paste if you don’t have fresh
    • Garlic - you can use paste if you don’t have fresh
    • Green chilli 
    • Vegetable oil - I sometimes use ghee and sometimes raw pressed peanut or canola oil. 

    How to Make Onion Tomato Masala

    To make Onion Tomato Masala, you need onions, tomatoes, ginger, green chillies, and cooking fat of your choice. You can use vegetable oil or ghee as per your taste preference. 

    You can make a big batch of masala in 30-40 minutes.

    I do not like to add any extras in my onion tomato masala, because every dish is different and I like to add different spices to flavour them. So, I add them at the time of cooking the actual dish. This is basically my blank Canvas to add flavours later on. 

    • Start with chopping onions, since I make a big batch I use a food processor to chop them. In this post, I am showing you steps to make a single serving. At the end of this post, I will show you how a big batch looks.
    • Small chop and grate appliances like this are a great help for chopping green chillies, onions and garlic.
    • Chop tomatoes and keep them aside. 
    • In a heavy bottom pan heat oil/ghee and add chopped onion, chopped ginger, and chopped garlic. 
    • Sauté the onion till lightly browned.
    • Reduce the heat to medium and then add tomatoes.
    • Cook the tomatoes till they soften and masala is uniformly cooked. 
    • Sign of masala properly cooked is most of the water is evaporated. Most recipes will tell you that oil starts to float. But, since I try to minimise the use of oil in everyday home cooking my masala is not floating in oil. 
    • After cooking, switch off the gas and allow this masala to cool down. You can store this in an airtight container for 6-7 days in the fridge and up to 6-8 weeks in the freezer. 

    How to Store Onion Tomato Masala in Fridge

    You can make a big batch of masala in advance and store it in freezer safe containers. It can be stored in the fridge for 6-7days and in the freezer for 6-8 weeks.

    Recipe Notes and Common Questions Answered

    • Instead of finely chopping you can use grated or paste of ginger garlic and green chillies.
    • I do not add turmeric in this masala because I use it to temper the dal as well and do not use turmeric in dal tadka. I add that while boiling dals.  
    • You can use canned tomatoes as a substitute to regular tomatoes. Whole tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, canned diced tomatoes are all fine if you do not have fresh tomatoes.
    • As I have written above I do not season my curry pastes simply because I like to use spices and seasonings as per my recipe requirement. 
    • I have written measurements for the masala to use for 4-6 times depending upon cooking any dish for 4-5 people.  

    Cooking onion tomato masala for Indian gravies

    Having this onion tomato masala handy significantly reduces the time to cook Indian curry dishes. You can cook authentic, healthy and delicious Indian meals every day.

    onion tomato masala

    Onion Tomato Masala

    Easy to cook Indian Onion tomato masala recipe to cook Indian curries and gravy. Make a large batch store it in fridge and freezer to make quick curry any time.
    5 from 5 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: basic
    Cuisine: indian cuisine
    Keyword: bhuna masala, onion tomato masala
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 35 minutes
    Servings: 3 cups
    Calories: 236kcal
    Author: Rekha Kakkar

    Equipment

    • Non-Stick Pan (US)

    Ingredients

    • 300 grams Onions 4-5
    • 500 grams Tomatoes 8-9
    • 40 grams Ginger 2tbsp chopped
    • 20 grams Garlic 1tbsp chopped
    • 6 Green chilli
    • 3 tablespoon Vegetable oil

    Instructions

    • Start with chopping onions, since I make a big batch I use food processor to chop them. In this post I am showing you steps to make single serving. In the end of this post I will show you how does a big batch looks like.
    • Small chop and grate appliances like this are great help for chopping green chillies, onions and garlic.
    • Chop tomatoes and keep them aside.
    • In a heavy bottom pan heat oil/ghee and add chopped onion, chopped ginger, and chopped garlic.
    • Sauté the onion till lightly browned.
    • Reduce the heat to medium and then add tomatoes.
    • Cook the tomatoes till they soften and masala is uniformly cooked.
    • Sign of masala properly cooked is most of water is evaporated. Most recipes will tell you that oil starts to float. But, since I try to minimise use of oil in everyday home cooking my masala is not floating in oil.
    • After cooking switch off the gas and allow this masala to cool down. You can store this in air tight container for 6-7 days in fridge and upto 6-8 weeks in freezer.

    Notes

    • Instead of finely chopping you can use grated or paste of ginger garlic and green chillies.
    • I do not add turmeric in this masala because I use it to temper the dal as well and do not use turmeric in dal tadka. I add that while boiling dals.  
    • You can use canned tomatoes as a substitute to regular tomatoes. Whole tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, canned diced tomatoes are all fine if you do not have fresh tomatoes.
    • As I have written above I do not season my curry pastes simply because I like to use spices and seasonings as per my recipe requirement. 
    • I have written measurements for the masala to use for 4-6 times depending upon cooking any dish for 4-5 people.  

    Nutrition

    Calories: 236kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 315mg | Potassium: 623mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 1388IU | Vitamin C: 44mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 1mg

    More Indian Street Food

    • Dahi Vada or Dahi Bhalla Chaat
    • Bhel Puri Recipe
    • Jhalmuri Recipe
    • Sabudana Khichdi (Video Recipe)
    122 shares
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • WhatsApp

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave me your feedback here please Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




    1. Bindu

      March 31, 2020 at 1:32 pm

      5 stars
      What my mother used to do whenever there were planned visits by guests.

      Reply
      • Rekha Kakkar

        April 03, 2020 at 3:07 pm

        I agree this makes cooking so much easier. Thank you for sharing this lovely feedback!

        Reply
    2. Vandana

      March 31, 2020 at 1:51 pm

      5 stars
      Nice handy recipe masala. I always prepar in bulk and keep in my fridge. When ever I get better deal in onion. At d moment I hv plenty tomatoes from my home garden

      Reply
      • Rekha Kakkar

        April 03, 2020 at 3:06 pm

        Yes that makes life easier to a large extent. Thank you for sharing this lovely feedback!

        Reply
    3. Lakshmi Ramamurthy

      April 12, 2020 at 3:10 am

      5 stars
      How can you use it removing from freezer? Thaw or microwave the whole jar?

      Reply
      • Rekha Kakkar

        April 14, 2020 at 12:02 pm

        For using this I transfer one jar from freezer to fridge and it thaws there overnight. If urgent I open the lid and microwave. Never thaw on countertop

        Reply
    4. Nandini Sarawgi

      June 21, 2020 at 10:12 pm

      5 stars
      I don’t know why I never thought of freezing curry bases! Your blog has given me so many ideas! I am gonna start first thing tomorrow! Thank u!

      Reply
    5. Shrey

      December 29, 2020 at 1:12 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks ma'am for sharing these life savers!
      I am a college student and was looking for meal prep guides. This was really helpful.
      Also, please make a series for people like me..

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Looking For Something?

    HI! THIS IS REKHA KAKKAR

    Life is complicated so let’s keep our food simple! No this is not a quote from someone else 🙂 this actually sums up my food philosophy and why I started this food blog.

    I am Rekha, I am the Cook, writer, and photographer behind this food blog. Now a YouTuber 

    More about me →

    Popular Today

    • Palak chole Recipe
    • Veggie Rice Recipe for Diabetics
    • Mizeria Salad Recipe 
    • Shirazi Salad Recipe

    Soup Recipes

    • Borscht Recipe
    • Vegetable Weight Loss Soup Recipe - Pressure Cooker
    • Instant Pot Veggie and Quinoa Soup - Pressure Cooker Recipe
    • Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup 

    Immunity Boosting Teas

    • CFC Tea Recipe - Cumin Coriander Fennel Tea
    • Kadha Recipe|Indian Herbal Drink
    • Cinnamon Tea Recipe
    • Kahwa Tea Recipe - Kashmiri Tea

    Recent Posts

    • Palak chole Recipe
    • Veggie Rice Recipe for Diabetics
    • Mizeria Salad Recipe 
    • Shirazi Salad Recipe
    • Orange and Pomegranate Salad

    Footer

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • About Rekha
    • Work With Me

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Follow Along

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Pinterest

    ↑ back to top

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.