[Sca-cooks] Uses for tamarind paste???

[Sue Clemenger]

Paste, definitely.  I've seen the whole fruit (pods?) in cellophane packages
in areas with a higher Hispanic concentration than we've got.
It's a dark color (probably dark brown), and not an opaque color--more than
anything, it looks like a thickish brick of fruit leather, or one of the
period fruit pastes I've made over the years (like black and white quince
pastes, for instance).  It's even relatively pliable.
I don't think it's completely uniform in texture--I could see a few
lighter-colored flecks in there, about the same way the lighter-colored
inside of a date shows against the darker brown outsides.
I've never had jaggery, I don't think, or seen it for sale (will try your
suggestion with the house "brown sugar," though ;o).  We have one Indian-ish
restaurant in town that makes some pretty good, uhm, "interprative" (is that
a word? do I want interpretative???) curries, all vegetarian, and I think
I've seen tamarind show up as an ingredient in a couple of their
sauces/chutnies, but I don't remember if the one, lone Indian sub-continent
cookbook I've got mentions it.
--Maire, in a mood to play with someone's food ;-D

----- Original Message -----
From: <ranvaig at columbus.rr.com>
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2006 7:44 PM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Uses for tamarind paste???


> >Hi, everyone!
> >I scored two packages (bricks?) of tamarind paste yesterday at our local
> >(very tiny) Vietnamese deli.
>
> Is it paste or dried tamarind fruit?  The stuff in bricks in Indian
> stores is whole fruit with seeds and fiber and has to be soaked and
> strained.  I usually buy tamarind concentrate which comes in little
> plastic jars and keeps indefinitely in the fridge.  Sometimes I see
> tamarind pods in Mexican or Indian stores, and even in our largest
> store, Meijers.
>
> Try mixing the strained tamarind with brown sugar or jaggery and then
> diluting for a wonderful drink.  I haven't looked for documentation,
> but I believe this is period, at least in the ME.
>
> Tamarind, a few dates, jaggery and cumin make the brown sweet sour
> sauce served with Indian snacks.  (Jaggery is an unrefined Indian
> sugar).
>
> Ranvaig