Makhana, Til, Alsi and Moringa Powder: What One Spoon Gives

Verdict: this viral makhana, kala til, alsi and moringa powder is a decent seed sprinkle, not a multivitamin. One heaped spoon gives roughly a third of a day’s plant omega-3 and small amounts of everything else, which is useful, but far from “all your vitamins in one chamach”.

The message usually arrives with a photo of a glass jar and the words “bohat powerful, roz ek chamach”. It’s a nice mix, honestly. But a 9 g spoon can only hold 9 g of stuff, and that sets hard limits on what it can do. Below is the arithmetic, what each ingredient brings, how to make it so it doesn’t go rancid, and who should go easy. It sits in our Desi Remedies series.

What one spoon of makhana, til and alsi powder actually gives

First, split the spoon. Each ingredient’s share of a 9 g serving equals its share of the 175 g batch. Makhana is 60 of 175, so about 34%, which is roughly 3.1 g of your spoon. Til works out to about 2.6 g, alsi 2.1 g, moringa 1.5 g, amla 1 g, sonth 0.5 g, and the elaichi and kali mirch about a quarter of a gram each.

Then multiply each share by standard food-table values per 100 g and add them up. Figures below are rounded and approximate, because seeds, powders and roasting all vary.

Two of these numbers need a warning label. Moringa leaf powder is listed anywhere from about 10 to 40 mg of iron per 100 g depending on the leaves, drying and testing, so the iron figure is a range, not a promise. And amla loses a large part of its vitamin C when it’s dried, ground and stored, so the powder in a jar for months may give very little.

What each ingredient is doing in the jar

• Makhana (34% of the spoon): bulk, crunch when roasted, a little protein. It makes the powder light and mild, but it’s the least nutrient-dense seed in the mix.
• Kala til: calcium, iron and good fats. Unhulled black til carries far more calcium than hulled white til.
• Alsi: the star. It gives most of the ALA omega-3 and a good share of the fibre. Ground alsi is absorbed; whole alsi often passes straight through.
• Moringa: some calcium, iron and a green, slightly bitter taste. Amounts vary a lot from one powder to the next.
• Amla powder: sourness and some polyphenols. Not a reliable vitamin C source once dried.
• Sonth, elaichi, kali mirch: flavour and warmth. Tiny amounts, tiny nutrition.

What it can’t do, whatever the forward says

People share this mix for joint pain, hair fall, weak bones, “khoon ki kami”, energy and weight loss. None of those is realistic from one spoon. About 60 mg of calcium won’t rebuild bones when an adult needs around 1,000 mg a day. Roughly 1 mg of iron won’t correct anaemia, which needs a blood test and a doctor’s plan. Hair fall usually tracks iron stores, thyroid, protein, stress or recent illness. And 45 kcal in warm water melts no fat.

What it can do: add a steady bit of omega-3 and fibre, and nudge you towards seeds.

How to make it properly so it doesn’t turn bitter

Each seed roasts at its own pace. Roast them together and the til burns while the makhana stays chewy.

1. Dry-roast 60 g makhana on low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring, until one snaps cleanly between your fingers.
2. Roast 50 g kala til separately on low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until it starts to pop and smell nutty. Don’t let it smoke.
3. Roast 40 g alsi separately for 3 to 4 minutes, until it crackles.
4. Spread everything on a plate and let it cool fully, about 20 minutes. Warm seeds turn pasty and sweat in the jar.
5. Grind the makhana first, then add til, alsi, 30 g moringa, 20 g amla, 10 g sonth, 5 g elaichi and 5 g kali mirch. Pulse in short bursts so the oily seeds don’t turn into paste.
6. Store in a dry, airtight glass jar. Use a dry spoon. In summer, keep it in the fridge.

A 175 g batch at 9 g a day lasts about 19 days, which is close to the two weeks that ground alsi and til keep well. Smell the jar every few days. Fresh powder smells nutty and green. Rancid powder smells like old oil paint or crayons and tastes bitter at the back of the throat. If it does, throw it out; the fats have gone off and they don’t do you any good.

For roasting makhana properly, see our makhana roasting guide.

What if you change the amounts?

• More alsi: up to about 60 g in the batch is fine and lifts the omega-3, but brings more bloating at first and faster spoilage. Our alsi guide covers daily food amounts.
• Less alsi: you lose the main real benefit.
• More moringa: more bitterness and looser stools, and no gain above roughly 2 g of moringa a day from food.
• More sonth or kali mirch: more heat and more acidity. Keep them small.
• More amla: sourer, for very little extra.
• Less makhana: a denser, oilier mix with more nutrition per spoon.
• Remove til: needed if anyone has a sesame allergy; you lose most of the calcium.

Cheaper food swaps that give as much or more

A tablespoon of plain ground alsi (about 7 g) gives more ALA than the whole spoon of mix, around 1.6 g. A katori of palak or sarson saag with a katori of daal gives far more iron and calcium. A glass of milk or a bowl of dahi gives about 250 to 300 mg of calcium. One fresh amla gives more vitamin C than months of the powder. The mix is pleasant; it just isn’t the best value per rupee. For a deeper look at the leaf, see moringa cautions.

Questions people ask about this seed powder