The 12 Best Fenugreek Substitutes For Your Recipes

Fenugreek seeds and leaves are common in many Indian and Mediterranean recipes as they add a nutty and earthy flavor. 

Although they taste bitter when eaten raw, fenugreek seeds and leaves taste sweet and bring a unique spicy aroma to sweet and savory dishes when roasted and incorporated into your recipes. 

But what if you run out of this intense flavor enhancer in the middle of your cooking? This guide provides many versatile options that you can try out if you’re looking for a fenugreek substitute. Let’s explore them. 

The best substitutes for fenugreek

Fenugreek seeds and leaves are grown and consumed in India, several regions of Northern Africa, and Southern Europe. They are usually combined with other spices in a biryani, used as a meat rub, or to make chutneys, stews, salads, or sauces.

You can buy fenugreek seeds, fenugreek powder, fresh, frozen, or even dried leaves. If the recipe calls for fenugreek seeds, you can replace them with powder, but not the other way around because the texture of the seeds can affect the consistency of your sauces and curry blends. 

The dried leaves can be used in large amounts to provide the same taste as the fresh leaves. However, you can’t use the seeds as a dried fenugreek leaves substitute because they offer a different taste and are cooked differently. 

Both fenugreek seeds and leaves have a burned sugar flavor and can go well with different ingredients to add some warmth and a nutty, earthy flavor. They’re spicy with a little bit of bitterness and can enhance the flavor of multiple savory and sweet dishes. 

Some bread recipes use fenugreek seeds to enhance flavor, as they provide a sweet caramel-like flavor. They can also be used to improve the taste of your roast and fish dishes. 

Fenugreek leaves are combined with other ingredients like celery in your soup, sautés, or even salads. Some people also infuse fenugreek leaves to drink healthy tea.

While the leaves are usually added towards the end of the cooking process to create a fresh aroma, the seeds are usually mixed with other ingredients in the beginning. The seeds are slightly more bitter than the leaves, so they provide a stronger flavor. 

Despite all the fantastic features of fenugreek seeds and leaves, they might not be that easy to find. If you can’t hit an Indian food store, finding a replacement for fenugreek will help you carry out your recipes with the best flavor and aroma. 

There are several fenugreek alternatives that you can try in your recipe, depending on which part of the plant the original recipe calls for. The following options will help you enhance the flavor to add the needed warmth and richness to your dish. 

1. Maple Syrup

Maple syrup might not be the first option that crosses your mind when you’re looking for a substitute for fenugreek, but it actually provides the same slightly bitter notes with some sweetness. 

Sotolon is a chemical compound that can be found in both maple syrup and fenugreek. As a matter of fact, some recipes of artificial maple syrup call for the use of fenugreek seeds to enhance the flavor. 

When used as a fenugreek replacement in a chutney or sauce, maple syrup should be used sparingly because you don’t want to add too much sweetness to your recipes. This bittersweet syrup can be used to replace both seeds and leaves because of its earthy and nutty flavor. 

2. Yellow Mustard  Seeds

Yellow mustard seeds can be the perfect fenugreek seeds substitute because they add the same nutty yet spicy flavor. 

These seeds combine sweetness with spiciness in a chutney or sauce. They can also be used to flavor meat and fish dishes. Just replace the same amount of fenugreek seeds with yellow mustard seeds to enjoy a subtle yet delicious aroma. 

3. Black Mustard Seeds

Black mustard seeds have a stronger flavor than yellow ones. If you need your curry or chutney to be more intense, you can add black mustard seeds, which are a bit spicier and more pungent. 

When used to substitute fenugreek seeds, black mustard seeds can be a little bitter. This is why you need to decrease the amount if you don’t like this flavor. 

If your recipe calls for some sweetness, you can mix black mustard seeds with maple syrup to achieve the desired flavor and aroma. You can also roast mustard seeds if you find that they add too much spiciness to your recipe. 

4. Mustard Leaves

Green mustard leaves have an interesting flavor. As you chew the leaves, you enjoy a spicy mustard flavor that is not too overpowering combined with some grassy freshness. As a result, it won’t mess up with the other flavors in your dish. 

You can use green mustard leaves as a substitute for fenugreek leaves in a stew or soup. You can even mix mustard leaves with the other greens in your salad to add a little kick.

Some people also use mustard greens in smoothies and teas instead of fenugreek leaves because they’re healthy. 

5. Dijon Mustard

If you have no access to mustard seeds or leaves, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard will do the trick. It has a pleasant spicy flavor that lingers like wasabi. 

The sharp, tangy flavor has a bit of spice that will help enhance the taste of different sauces and meat rubs. It can’t replace fenugreek seeds in a dessert, but you can use honey-Dijon mustard instead.

6. Curry Powder

If dried fenugreek powder is the main ingredient in your savory dish, you can replace it with curry powder. There are several types of curry powder blends, and most of them contain dried fenugreek seed powder as the main ingredient.

Curry powder is easier to find if you can’t find fenugreek seeds or the dried powder. However, supermarket curry blends usually contain other spices to add a special taste to your recipes. 

This is why curry powder will be the perfect fenugreek powder substitute if you’re not fond of fenugreek’s taste. It should be added at the beginning of the cooking process. 

If you want to enhance the taste of fenugreek in your recipe, we recommend that you blend your curry powder with some oil before adding it to your recipe. Oil, especially olive oil, will help bring out the flavor and aroma of fenugreek. 

Masala curry powder contains other overpowering spices like clover and cinnamon that bring more flavors to your recipe. You can experiment with different curry blends to find the right flavor and taste for your dish. 

7. Chinese Celery

Chinese celery looks like regular celery, but it’s more peppery and pungent. It’s rarely eaten raw but can be added to stews or paired with lamb, ham, chicken, or turkey to add the needed kick. Chinese celery can be used in stir-fries, but it can also be used as a flavor-enhancing herb. 

Thanks to its slightly hot and bitter taste, Chinese celery can be a perfect choice if you want to find a fenugreek leaves substitute. Just toss it towards the end of your recipe to bring out its distinctive flavor. You can also add some ground mustard seeds if you want to intensify the aroma. 

8. Celery

Regular European celery can be used to replace fenugreek leaves if you don’t like the strong taste of Chinese celery. It has a bold earthy flavor with the needed freshness that makes it work for salads and sauces. It can also be used as a meat rub. 

Celery has a mild flavor when blanched. Otherwise, it will be bitter when used as a fenugreek substitute. It can be used to prepare a healthy smoothie or tea. 

9. Fennel Seeds

Fennel seeds can be the perfect substitute for fenugreek seeds for those who find fenugreek seeds to be too strong. They’re sweet, so they will work for desserts that call for the use of fenugreek seeds. They can also be used in a meat rub to enhance the flavor. 

You can mix fennel seeds with some mustard seeds to create a sweet yet hot blend that resembles the taste of fenugreek seeds. Just heat fennel seeds with mustard seeds, as the heat will help infuse the flavors together and make the mustard seeds less overpowering. 

10. Kale

Kale leaves are here on the list because you can actually use kale leaves to replace fenugreek leaves in stews, stir-fries, curry, salads, and casseroles. 

To overcome their bitter taste, kale leaves need to be cooked before they’re included in your recipe. They’re not as spicy as fenugreek leaves, but they have a delicious earthy flavor that will work for you if you can’t find fenugreek leaves or don’t like their strong taste. 

11. Spinach 

Spinach leaves can replace fenugreek leaves if you don’t like their spiciness. Spinach leaves have a mild, slightly sweet taste, so they can be perfect for salads and stews. 

When cooked, the flavor of spinach leaves becomes even stronger and slightly acidic. They will affect the other flavors in your recipe, so you might want to proceed with caution the first time.

12. Alfalfa Sprouts

Alfalfa sprouts have a sweet yet nutty flavor that combines with the freshness of greens. Thanks to their mild flavor, alfalfa can be a perfect fenugreek leaves replacement in several recipes because they’re not overpowering. 

Add them to your salads or sandwiches if you don’t like the spiciness of fenugreek leaves. 

How to choose a fenugreek substitute

The distinctive taste of fenugreek adds the needed sweetness and hotness to lots of recipes and dishes. Whether you’re looking for a substitute to replace the seeds, leaves, or ground powder, there are several options that you can choose from depending on your preferences and the cooking recipe. 

Maple syrup is the best ground fenugreek substitute because it delivers the same taste and aroma. To add more spiciness, you can mix maple syrup with mustard seeds or add them alone to your chutney, meat rub, or sauce. 

Yellow mustard seeds replace fenugreek seeds in many dishes. If you like an intense flavor, you can use black mustard seeds. 

Dijon mustard has a pungent flavor and can replace fenugreek seeds while adding a new flavor. 

Curry powder can also be used to replace ground fenugreek seeds because it contains fenugreek and other spices. This option will work for you if you find fenugreek seeds to be too overpowering. 

You can use fennel seeds to replace fenugreek seeds in desserts because they’re sweet. You can also mix them with some mustard seeds to enhance the flavor of savory dishes. 

To replace fenugreek leaves, you can either use Chinese celery leaves or kale. Both are packed with amazing nutrients and will provide the same earthy and peppery flavor, although kale will be a little milder. Celery leaves also work, but they’re fresher and milder. 

Mustard leaves can replace fenugreek leaves in salads and stews. You can also use them to prepare smoothies. If you need a mild replacement that adds some crunch, you can try alfalfa sprouts. 

Spinach leaves work for those who don’t like the spiciness of fenugreek leaves. You can use them in both raw and cooked dishes.

Next time you run out of fenugreek seeds, all you have to do is check our recommended list of substitutes for inspiration. You will definitely find a fenugreek alternative that works for you.