Tasty, Tantalizing Tamarind
What large tree grows cinnamon-brown, fuzzy pea pods? Can this be a fruit?
Tasty, Tantalizing Tamarind (Tamarindus indica)
The Arabs introduced tamarind, from the Arabic tamrhindi (Indian date), to
Europe in the Middle Ages. It gives a sweet-sour, pleasant acidity to food. The
tamarind tree, graceful with feathery foliage and small red and yellow flowers,
is a distant cousin of the string bean and a member of the pea family. In its
native habitat of tropical Africa and southern Asia, it can grow to eighty feet.
Tamarind fruit is a pod three to six inches long, three-fourths inch wide,
cinnamon-brown, and fuzzy. The fruit pods hang in clusters on the tree. Shiny,
brown, inedible seeds inside the pod are embedded in a jamlike, edible pulp.
When mature, the edible pulp shrinks from the pod. The pulp can be found pressed
into bricks, but the jellylike tamarind concentrate sold in jars is much easier
to use. Find it in Oriental or Indian markets.
Tamarind Tips
Dilute the tamarind concentrate to your liking with water and use it to add zip
to sauces, chutney, curries, and marinades. It adds a special taste and color to
pineapple and mango chutneys. Tamarind is wonderful as a dipping sauce for
kebobs as well as drizzled over pastries.
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