Fenugreek

Fenugreek is notable for salicylate, histamine, FODMAPs and oligosaccharides. Clear on tyramine, sucrose, lactose, sorbitol, fructose, nickel, oxalates and gluten.

Yes — fenugreek is high in salicylate. Fenugreek is a dried seed and carries salicylate as dried seeds do, though no measurement places it: the one survey that put 112 foods through GC-MS for this axis does not include fenugreek, and the spice assay that does cover it gives a ceiling for the whole group and no value for any single one. What is particular to fenugreek is the dose — it arrives inside curry blends by the pinch, and inside daily supplement capsules by the gram, which is a different food question entirely.

Fenugreek contains moderate levels of histamine. Fenugreek is a liberator, and it is the spice most likely to be met in a quantity that matters: it is a seed rather than a bark or a berry, used by the spoonful in curry pastes and by the handful in some breads. It is also a legume, which puts it on other axes as well.

Fenugreek contains moderate levels of FODMAPs. Fenugreek is one of the rare foods that carry two FODMAP classes at once. Prichard measured the seed at 1.11 grams of fructans and 1.27 grams of galacto-oligosaccharides per hundred — the only one of the five significant sources in that study carrying both classes, and both are FODMAPs, so this level cannot sit below the oligosaccharide one. It is used as a spice by the teaspoon; sprouted fenugreek eaten as a leaf is a different quantity, and this figure is a content per hundred grams rather than a threshold per serving.

Fenugreek contains moderate levels of oligosaccharides. Fenugreek is a legume seed used as a spice, and on this axis it answers like a legume. It is the only one of Prichard's five significant sources to carry both classes: 1.11 grams of fructans and 1.27 grams of galacto-oligosaccharides per hundred. It is used as a spice, by the teaspoon, and sprouted fenugreek eaten as a leaf is a different quantity. Amounts vary by brand and recipe, so always check the label of the exact product.