Upgrade Ketchup With This Spice For 10x The Flavor

There are quite a few kinds of ketchup out there. Some of us have lived long enough to see a ton of iterations hit supermarket shelves over the years, including purple ketchup, one of the weirdest ketchup products ever sold by Heinz. You can even create a tasty variation using something you likely already have in your spice cabinet: curry powder. 

When added to the acidic sweetness of ketchup, curry powder adds just the right amount of spice and earthiness. Your ketchup still tastes like ketchup, just with a slight upgrade. While curry ketchup is a new idea to some of us in the U.S., it's well-known abroad. In certain countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium, the condiment can easily be found in restaurants, street food carts, and grocery stores.

An important note: while curry powder is often associated with Indian food, it's actually a British invention that works as a shortcut to creating Indian-style flavors. It's a blend of seasonings, and understanding the flavor profile of curry ketchup abroad can help you create delicious flavors at home. Hela curry ketchup is an uber-popular brand of the good stuff in Germany, and the curry in the ingredients list includes mustard flour, pepper, paprika, chiles, carnations (a type of clove), and spices. Adding some of these to your homemade curry ketchup might help you feel like you're kicking back in Germany, enjoying bite after perfect bite of slightly spicy street food.

You have a bottle of ketchup from your favorite brand and curry powder, now it's time to mix the two. First, take it slow. Some curry powders carry quite a kick of spice, so add a bit at a time, taste, and add more if needed. Secondly, find the Goldilocks temperature for your curry ketchup. While it's not the safest idea to store ketchup at room temperature for an extended period, serving it (and other foods for that matter) at the sweet spot of not too hot and not too cold can actually help highlight the sweet, salty, umami flavors.

Once you have your curry ketchup just right, it's time to enjoy it. Personally, I can't get enough of salty french fries dipped in curry ketchup. In Germany, curry ketchup is often served on top of currywurst, a sliced sausage. It's also popularly served with schnitzel (a piece of meat pounded thin, breaded, and fried). Basically, use it wherever you'd normally use ketchup. Enjoy the extra bit of savory spice and flavor.