Hela: How Curry Ketchup Became a German Cult Favorite

Ask Germans about curry ketchup and Hela is likely to come up quickly. Its tall bottle and warmly spiced sauce appear beside grilled sausages, fries, schnitzel and quick weeknight dinners. The flavor is sweeter and more aromatic than ordinary tomato ketchup, with curry spices doing much of the work.

That cult favorite grew from a Hamburg spice business with roots going back more than a century.

Hela begins with herbs and spices

The company traces its modern story to May 13, 1905, when Hamburg merchant Otto Hermann Laue took over Carl H. Rose & Co. He had begun there as an apprentice, learning the trade in medicinal herbs and chemicals from the ground up.

In 1906, he renamed the business Hermann Laue—shortened to Hela—and focused it on spices. Its position near Hamburg’s slaughterhouse later made Hela a natural partner for butchers who needed dependable seasoning blends for meat and sausage production.

The curry ketchup arrives in 1963

After wartime shortages, Hela restarted mixed-spice production in 1946. The next generation expanded the company’s seasoning expertise, and in 1963 the now-famous Hela Spice Ketchup reached German supermarket shelves for the first time.

The product joined tomato sweetness with a proprietary curry blend. It was easy to use, family-friendly and versatile enough to become a fixture at grills, snack stands and dinner tables.

How to serve Hela Curry Gewürz Ketchup

For a quick currywurst, slice cooked bratwurst and add Hela curry ketchup with an extra dusting of curry powder. Spoon it onto fries, burgers or grilled chicken, or mix it with mayonnaise for a dipping sauce.

Different varieties let you adjust the character: mild for an easy all-purpose sauce, spicy or extra hot for more heat, and garlic for a savory twist. Shop Hela Curry Gewürz Spicy Ketchup at European Deli.

A spice company behind a cult bottle

Hela’s signature sauce makes more sense when you know the company began with spices, not tomatoes. Its curry ketchup is essentially a century of seasoning knowledge made convenient. Read the full company timeline on Hela’s official history page.