fenugreek seeds
Small, hard, yellowish-brown seeds of a legume, briefly fried in hot fat. Bitter and savoury, with an aroma reminiscent of maple syrup and curry.
Fenugreek seeds are the dried seeds of a clover-like legume, angular, very hard and yellowish-brown in colour. Raw, they taste distinctly bitter. Only a brief frying in oil or ghee brings out their characteristic warm aroma, which recalls maple syrup, caramel and curry powder. In Himalayan and North Indian cooking they usually go into the hot fat right at the start, for lentil dishes, vegetables and pickles. If they darken too far the flavour turns harsh and bitter, so a few seconds are enough, until they turn reddish-brown. They are sold in Asian shops, Indian or Turkish grocers, health food stores and through spice mail order, and sometimes in the spice aisle of larger supermarkets.
Substitute:
There is no truly equivalent substitute, because the combination of bitterness and sweetish aroma does not occur in any common spice. Dried fenugreek leaves capture the aroma but are milder and are usually added towards the end rather than fried in the fat. If neither is available, it is better to leave the spice out than to replace it with mustard seed or fennel, which push the dish in a different direction.