Tamarind

The first time I saw these lumpy brown pods in a Chinese market I brought some home and tried to eat the little beans on the inside of the pods—not a success. It’s the sticky pulp that surrounds the beans that Asian and South American cooks use to give a sour tang to cold drinks, jams, and soups. I’ve since figured things out, and tamarind has become one of my favorite flavorings for Thai soups.

Extracting tamarind pulp from fresh tamarind pods can be a nuisance, and since fresh tamarind isn’t always available I usually rely on tamarind paste because it’s easy to find in Asian markets (or to order by mail) and keeps for months in the refrigerator. To use tamarind paste, dissolve a walnut-size chunk by working it around with a wooden spoon in ½ cup boiling water, strain it through a fine-mesh strainer, and add it to the soup.