Fenugreek in Poland: kozieradka, methi seeds and kasuri methi

Fenugreek is kozieradka in Polish (kozieradka pospolita) and methi in Hindi. If your recipe asks for fenugreek seeds, look for nasiona kozieradki; for kasuri methi, the dried leaves, look for suszone liście kozieradki or simply the Indian name kasuri (kasoori) methi on the pack. The seeds are hard, yellow-brown, bitter and smell faintly of maple syrup; the dried leaves are crumbled into sauces such as butter chicken at the end of cooking.

Fenugreek words on Polish packs

Seeds and leaves taste different, so a recipe that asks for one cannot use the other. Read the pack: nasiona means seeds, liście means leaves.

Dried leaves from Indian brands are usually sold under the Indian name, kasuri or kasoori methi. Fresh methi leaves are hard to find outside Indian shops.

What fenugreek is

Fenugreek is a legume, grown in India, the Middle East and around the Mediterranean. Its seeds are small, angular and very hard. The leaves are small, oval and grow in threes, like clover.

• Seeds (methi dana): clearly bitter when raw. Once toasted, they turn nutty and sweetish. Use them in small amounts.
• Fresh leaves (methi): slightly bitter and herby. They are cooked like spinach.
• Dried leaves (kasuri methi): very aromatic, sweetish, with notes of hay and maple syrup.

How to use fenugreek seeds

In a tadka. In Indian cooking, fenugreek seeds go into hot oil or ghee together with mustard seeds, cumin and curry leaves, at the start of cooking a dal, sambar or vegetable curry. Fry them only for a few seconds, until slightly darker. Burnt seeds are very bitter and spoil the whole dish.

In spice mixes. Fenugreek is one of the five spices of the Bengali mix panch phoron, and in ground form it goes into sambar powder and many curry powders.

In pickles. Fenugreek seeds are added to Indian pickles (achar) of mango and lemon.

In dosa and idli batter. In South India a pinch of fenugreek seeds is soaked with the rice and lentils for dosa batter. They give the batter its typical aroma.

How much? Start with about half a teaspoon of seeds for a pot of dal or curry for four. Fenugreek can easily take over a dish.

How to use kasuri methi

Kasuri methi is one of the flavours that make North Indian restaurant sauces taste the way they do. Use it like this:

1. Near the end of cooking the sauce, take a tablespoon of dried leaves.
2. Rub them between your palms over the pan to release the aroma.
3. Stir and cook for another minute or two.

Kasuri methi goes into butter chicken, paneer butter masala, dal makhani, malai kofta and other creamy tomato sauces. You can also sprinkle it on naan or paratha dough before baking, or add it to the dough for thepla, thin Gujarati flatbreads. For a stronger aroma, warm the leaves in a dry pan for a few seconds before crumbling them.

Fresh methi leaves

Fresh fenugreek leaves are cooked with potatoes (aloo methi), with peas and cream (methi malai matar), or added to flatbread dough. To soften the bitterness, sprinkle the chopped leaves with salt for a few minutes and squeeze out the juice. Kasuri methi can partly replace fresh methi, but its taste is stronger and drier.

What to use instead of fenugreek

There is no full substitute. In sauces, a little dried celery leaf can partly stand in for kasuri methi, but the taste will be different. Instead of the seeds in a tadka, use more mustard seeds and cumin. The dish will be less bitter and less complex.

How to store fenugreek

Keep the seeds in an airtight jar in a dry, dark place; they hold their aroma for a long time. Kasuri methi loses its smell faster, especially in an open bag. Tip it into an airtight jar and keep it away from moisture and light.

Where to buy fenugreek in Poland

Little India sells dried fenugreek leaves, for example Suhana kasoori methi, also in a large 1 kg pack from MDH. There are also TRS methi seeds and other whole spices. Little India has shops in Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław and Gdańsk and ships orders across Poland.

Fenugreek is one of many Indian spices; the rest are in the Indian spices starter kit. Kasuri methi often goes into paneer dishes: see paneer in Poland.