Best Substitutes for Curry Leaves (and When to Use Them)
You’ve chopped the onions, measured out all your spices and started cooking, then you discover the recipe wants curry leaves and you haven’t got any. If curry leaves aren’t something you normally buy, there’s a fair chance you don’t even know whether you can leave them out or what on earth you’re supposed to replace them with.
The slightly annoying answer is that there isn’t a perfect substitute. Curry leaves have their own distinctive aroma and flavour, so swapping them for another herb isn’t quite the same as using parsley instead of coriander.
That doesn’t necessarily mean dinner is ruined, though. Depending on what you’re cooking, ingredients such as lime or lemon zest, makrut lime leaves or a combination of citrus zest and a fresh herb can bring back some of the freshness and citrus notes you’re missing. Sometimes, particularly in a dish with lots of other spices, simply leaving the curry leaves out may be better than adding something completely different just for the sake of making a substitution.
I use curry leaves in recipes including my Sri Lankan-inspired chicken curry and vegetable curry, so they’re something I’ve become more familiar with over the years. If you’re starting a recipe that specifically relies heavily on curry leaves, I’d still buy the real thing if you can. This guide is more for those annoying occasions when you’ve already started cooking and discover you haven’t got any!
What do curry leaves actually taste like?
Despite the name, curry leaves don’t taste like curry powder. Curry powder is a spice blend, while curry leaves are leaves from the curry tree, Murraya koenigii, and the two aren’t interchangeable.
Fresh curry leaves are very aromatic, with citrusy, savoury and slightly bitter notes that become particularly noticeable when the leaves are cooked in hot oil.
That’s what makes finding a substitute tricky. Lemon or lime can give you citrus, while another fresh herb can provide something green and aromatic, but none of them recreates everything a curry leaf brings to a dish.
If you’re making curries regularly, it’s worth getting hold of the real thing rather than continually trying to replace them.
What is the best substitute for curry leaves?
There isn’t one substitute I’d recommend for every recipe because it depends on how the curry leaves are being used.
If they’re an important part of the flavour of the dish, I’d rather tell you that no substitute will taste exactly the same. If they’re one of many aromatic ingredients in a curry, however, you have a few options that can work in a pinch.
1. Lemon or lime zest with basil
A little citrus zest combined with fresh basil can give you some of the citrus and herbal notes you’re missing, although it won’t taste exactly like curry leaves.
The important difference is when you add it. Curry leaves can be cooked in hot oil at the beginning of a recipe, whereas fresh basil and finely grated zest are better added towards the end. Frying basil as though it were a curry leaf isn’t going to give you the same result.
Start with a small amount and taste rather than trying to follow an exact leaf-for-leaf conversion.
2. Makrut lime leaves
Makrut lime leaves – sometimes still labelled kaffir lime leaves in shops and older recipes – are another possibility if you happen to have some.
They’re intensely citrusy and much tougher than curry leaves, though, so they’re not a direct substitute. I wouldn’t simply replace ten curry leaves with ten makrut lime leaves and hope for the best because you’d be changing the flavour of the dish considerably.
Use them sparingly and remember that whole leaves are generally removed before serving.
3. Lime zest
If you haven’t got fresh herbs or makrut lime leaves, a small amount of lime zest can provide some of the fresh citrus aroma you’d otherwise be missing.
It won’t provide the savoury side of curry leaves, so think of this as adding back one part of the flavour rather than recreating the ingredient.
I’d stir it through towards the end of cooking rather than frying it with the spices at the beginning.
4. Bay leaves
Bay leaves sometimes appear on curry-leaf substitute lists because they’re leaves used to flavour savoury dishes, but they don’t taste like curry leaves.
That doesn’t make them useless. A bay leaf can add another aromatic background note to a slowly cooked curry or stew, but it’s better to think of it as an alternative flavour than an actual substitute.
Add it while the dish cooks and remove it before serving.
5. Lemon balm
If you happen to grow lemon balm, its fresh citrus aroma means you can experiment with a little towards the end of cooking.
Again, this isn’t something I’d give an exact substitution ratio for because lemon balm and curry leaves taste quite different. Start with a small amount, taste the dish and add more if you think it needs it.
I’m not sure I’d go out and specifically buy lemon balm to replace curry leaves, though. At that point I’d probably just buy some curry leaves!
6. Fresh coriander
Fresh coriander doesn’t taste like curry leaves either, but if you’re making a curry that’s already full of spices, adding some coriander at the end can bring back a little of the fresh herbal character you might otherwise miss.
Use the stalks as well as the leaves because there’s plenty of flavour in them.
I’d treat coriander as a way of making the finished dish taste fresh rather than telling you it’s a genuine curry-leaf substitute.
Can I just leave curry leaves out?
Sometimes, yes.
If the recipe only contains a few curry leaves alongside lots of other spices and aromatics, leaving them out may make less difference than replacing them with an ingredient that takes the dish in a completely different direction.
It’s a different matter if curry leaves are one of the defining flavours of the recipe. In that situation I’d either wait until you’ve got some or accept that the finished dish is going to taste different.
My Sri Lankan-inspired chicken curry, for example, uses curry leaves alongside black pepper, cardamom, cloves, fennel, cumin and coriander. You could still make dinner if you discovered the curry leaves were missing, but I wouldn’t pretend a bay leaf suddenly makes them equivalent.
Can I use curry powder instead of curry leaves?
No. Despite having “curry” in both names, they’re completely different ingredients.
Curry powder is a mixture of ground spices, while curry leaves are an aromatic leaf. Adding extra curry powder will change the spice balance of your recipe without replacing the flavour you’ve lost by leaving out the leaves.
If your recipe already contains curry powder, stick to the quantity it asks for rather than adding an extra spoonful because you’ve run out of curry leaves.
What about dried curry leaves?
If you’ve already got dried curry leaves, you can certainly use them rather than throwing them away, but don’t expect them to have exactly the same aroma as fresh leaves.
Drying changes herbs and their flavour, and I’d avoid giving you a universal “use twice as many” rule because products vary.
Follow the packet instructions if they’re provided and adjust according to the recipe you’re making. If curry leaves are particularly important to the dish, fresh or frozen would be my preference.
Can you freeze fresh curry leaves?
Yes, and this is probably the most useful solution if you regularly find yourself buying more curry leaves than you need.
Remove any damaged leaves and make sure the curry leaves are clean and thoroughly dry before freezing them in a suitable freezer bag or container. Freezing them in useful portions means you can take out what you need rather than repeatedly opening one enormous bag.
I find this much more useful than relying on dried curry leaves because it means you’ve actually got the ingredient the recipe calls for next time.
Can you grow curry leaves in the UK?
The curry tree, Murraya koenigii, comes from a much warmer climate than Nottinghamshire, so growing one here isn’t quite the same as sticking a rosemary plant outside and forgetting about it.
It needs warmth, plenty of light and protection from British winter temperatures, which means it’s generally something you’d grow in a container and keep protected rather than plant permanently outside.
If you use curry leaves constantly and enjoy growing things, it could be an interesting plant to try. If you use six curry leaves twice a year, I’m not sure I’d reorganise the conservatory around one!
Where can I buy curry leaves in the UK?
Asian supermarkets and grocery shops are usually where I’d look first, particularly if you want a decent-sized packet rather than a tiny supermarket herb pack.
Larger supermarkets sometimes stock them too, although availability varies enormously by branch. They’re also available online if you don’t have an Asian grocery shop nearby.
If you find a good supply, freezing the extras means you don’t have to repeat the hunt every time a recipe asks for them.
More help with curry ingredients
If you’re getting more confident making curries at home, my guide to making a curry explains more about spices, bases and how the different elements of a curry work together.
You can also browse all my curry recipes if you’re looking for something to cook, or head to my vegetarian curry recipes if you want something meat-free.
And if you’ve bought a packet of curry leaves specifically for one recipe and now need an excuse to use some of them, try my Sri Lankan-inspired chicken curry or vegetable curry rather than leaving the rest slowly turning questionable at the back of the fridge!
