Name: Trinidad Curry Paste
Ingredients: 6 tablespoons roasted coriander seeds; 1 teaspoon roasted aniseeds; 1 teaspoon roasted whole cloves; 1 teaspoon ground tumeric; 1 teaspoon roasted cumin seeds; 1 teaspoon roasted fenugreek seeds; 1 teaspoon roasted back peppercorns; 1 teaspoon roasted mustard seeds; 2 cloves garlic, chopped; 1 large onion, chopped; 1/2 Congo or Habanero pepper chopped (Seeds and stem removed); Water as needed

Why it works: Coriander and cumin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,866 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Coriander + cumintop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,866 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Cumin + fenugreektop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together178 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Cumin + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,082 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Fenugreek + mustardtop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together137 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Roasted coriander seeds: Provides the main citrusy, earthy base flavour of the paste.
Garlic: Adds pungent aroma and savoury depth to the paste.
Onion: Adds body and sweetness that helps bind the paste.
Congo or habanero pepper: Supplies the heat and fruity aroma characteristic of the paste.
Roasted cumin seeds: Contributes warm, earthy aroma that deepens the spice blend.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (coriander, clove, cumin, fenugreek, mustard, garlic, pepper):

Spinachfits better
Okrafits better
Capsicumfits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against coriander, clove, cumin, fenugreek, mustard, garlic, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Clove	1 tsp ground (2g)	7
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Mustard	1 tsp (5g) yellow	3
Coriander	not in our table	0
Seed	not in our table	0
Fenugreek	not in our table	0
Water	not in our table	0

Trinidad Curry Paste