Can you please explain tamarind? Pods, pulp, paste, concentrate … I can’t keep up with them all. David, via email
How does Chaya Maya, development chef at Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, love tamarind? Let her count the ways: “It’s delicious, plus you can use it in sweet and savoury dishes, or to make lemonade, which we do in Mauritius; it has that sour sharpness that makes your mouth tingle. Actually, we need a tamarind movement.” Also in favour of the pucker fruit is Melissa Thompson, author of Motherland, namely for its “lovely consistency” and ability to “coat things nicely” while adding “depth”.
As David says, tamarind comes in various forms, but let’s start at the very beginning with those peanut-shaped pods, which Thompson likes to snack on – just crack open the shell and eat the flesh. “When I started cheffing, I wanted to do all the processes myself, so I’d buy a box of pods, peel them, soak them and mash them, which took so long!” Perhaps unsurprisingly, these days she prefers a compressed block, which also happens to be Maya’s go-to: “You have to hydrate it, then make a paste, but the blocks last longer, plus the manufacturer will have waited until the tamarind is ripe, so it’s sweet and caramelly.” Perfect, then, for Thompson’s barbecue sauce, which involves breaking off 50g pulp, steeping it in water and combining with apple molasses, but the possibilities are (almost) endless: “A block is the most versatile option, but only for someone who gets through a lot.”
