Asam

Tamarindus indica (Malaysia, asam; also known as asem jawa). This is the tamarind, whose English and botanical names are derived from Arabic tamr-hindi, ‘Indian date’. Tamarinds and dates do not in fact resemble each other at all when they are growing, but the Arab and Persian traders used to buy the dark brown tamarind pulp from India and it evidently reminded them of the flesh of preserved dates. Fresh tamarind, extracted from the hard pods after they have been cracked open, is brown and sticky and contains large seeds which do no harm in cooking but should be removed before serving. Tamarind is still sold in today’s supermarkets in blocks which are probably much like the ones the old Arab traders used to deal in. A block weighs about half a kilogram, and you simply break off as much as you need. However, ‘solid’ tamarind is normally used only when it has to be grilled or cooked over charcoal before it is added to the dish. If the recipe calls for this, break off a piece weighing about 30 g (1 oz) and either grill it, or heat it in a heavy iron pan, until all its surfaces are just a little charred. In all other cases, use tamarind water. Break off a piece from the block and put it in a little water; then squeeze and press it, so that the water becomes thick and brown. Strain the water. Repeat this process until you have as much tamarind water as you need. As a guide, 30 g of tamarind (1 oz) makes about 300 ml of tamarind water (½ pint); if the recipe specifies thick tamarind water, use twice as much tamarind.