Curry Leaf

The aromatic leaf of a South Asian tree, unrelated to curry powder. It smells citrusy, nutty and a little like toasted spice when fried in oil.

Flavor

How to use it

Fry Them in Hot Oil. Drop whole leaves into hot oil or ghee with mustard seeds. They sputter and crisp in seconds and flavor the oil, which you pour over a dish.

Use Them Whole. Leaves are tough and chewy to eat. Leave them in the pot and nudge them to the side of the plate, or chop them very small.

Common mistakes

• Adding them to a wet dish without frying first, where they stay flat and grassy.
• Buying dried leaves and expecting the same aroma as fresh ones.

What goes with curry leaf

• Coconut Milk. Coconut milk's sweet richness softens curry leaf's citrusy, nutty aroma in South Indian curries.
• Mustard Seed. Curry leaf and mustard seeds sputter together in hot oil as a classic tadka.
• Lentil. Lentil dals are tempered with curry leaves for fragrance.
• Yogurt. Yogurt, curry leaf and mustard seed make a cooling South Indian raita or kadhi.
• Tamarind. Curry leaf and tamarind season South Indian rasam and fish curries.
• Cumin. Cumin joins curry leaf in tempered oil for dals and vegetables.
• Turmeric. Turmeric's earthy color and flavor sit under curry leaf's citrusy aroma.
• Ginger. Ginger's bite and curry leaf's citrus notes season South Indian curries together.

Try tonight

• Dal finished with curry leaves and mustard seeds in hot oil
• Coconut chutney tempered with curry leaves
• South Indian coconut fish curry

Storage

Keep fresh leaves in the freezer in a bag. Dried leaves have very little aroma left.