Tamarind Sauce Recipe

Praew August 19, 2023 0 Comments

This sweet and tangy accompaniment can be used with a wide array of appetizers and finger food.

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Tamarind sauce drizzled over a black spoon, surrounded by scattered tamarind pulp, presented on a white dish.

In this easy tamarind dipping sauce recipe, I’ll guide you through crafting homemade tamarind concentrate from scratch. This extract then forms the heart of a delicious sweet and tangy condiment, which you can use for flavoring up your favorite dishes.

Overhead view of tamarind concentrate filled in a glass cup, with a wooden spoon over it releasing drips of the concentrate.

What is tamarind

Tamarind fruit is a brown, pod-like fruit which grows on the tamarind tree. Tamarind trees can be found in Africa, Southeast Asia and tropical regions around the world.

The pods are both long and short, with an outer shell that can be cracked open. Inside the pot is a brown pulp that surrounds the tamarind seeds. Tamarind tastes sweet and sour, and all of that flavor is concentrated in the pulp.

What is tamarind sauce

Tamarind sauce is a dipping sauce that uses tamarind as the key ingredient. It’s made by combining tamarind concentrate or pulp with a bunch of other ingredients such as sugar, cumin or other spices, and sometimes fruits. The taste is lightly sweet and sour, sometimes with a spicy kick, depending on the recipe and the ingredients.

Tamarind sauce in a black spoon with pulp around it.

In Thailand, a spicy tamarind dipping sauce is often eaten with bites and finger food, or fried food like spring rolls, fish cakes, or look chin (Thai street food meatballs).

This easy dipping sauce recipe is not spicy, instead it makes a slightly sweet and sour tamarind dipping sauce.

What is tamarind chutney

Tamarind chutney is a specific type of Indian tamarind sauce that falls under the category of chutneys in Indian cuisine. It’s more of a jelly-like sauce, often used as a condiment, where tamarind concentrate is the base. To this sauce, recipes often add a complex mix of flavors and Indian spices.

It starts with making tamarind concentrate, the liquid that’s extracted from the pulp.

To this, a touch of sweetness is added with sugar, jaggery, or honey. Additionally, Indian spices and other ingredients like cumin, ginger powder, cayenne pepper, coriander, anise seed, or black salt can also be added for more flavor.

You’ll often find tamarind chutney served with Indian food like samosas, pakoras, chaats, vada pav, aloo tikki, and others. A fresh mint chutney is often served alongside the sweet and sour tamarind chutney to balance it with a bit of freshness and spice.

All in all, tamarind chutney is a versatile condiment that can be used for many things.

You can use it as a marinade for meat, a salad dressing, spread it out on bread, as a dipping sauce, drizzle it over rice, add it to your stir-fries, or use it as a dip for vegetables.

What is tamarind concentrate

Before we can make the dipping sauce, we need to extract tamarind concentrate. This is done by extracting the liquid from tamarind pulp.

Thai woman extracting liquid from tamarind pulp with a clear blue sky, the background showing blossoming rice fields and banana trees in Thailand.

We’ll do this by simply mixing tamarind pulp with water, and then straining the liquid. The resulting tamarind concentrate is a tangy and slightly sweet concentrate that can be added to curries, stirred into sauces, used to flavor up soups, and more.

Top-down view of a pot with tamarind concentrate and a wooden spoon in it.

Tamarind pulp can be found at Thai supermarkets or Asian and Indian grocery stores, markets, or you can order it online.

I suggest purchasing seedless tamarind pulp, like the one below.

Recipes with tamarind concentrate

Tamarind extract is often used as an ingredient in Thai food. After making the concentrate, you can use it in one of my other Thai recipes:

Why make this sauce yourself

With this homemade tamarind sauce recipe, you get to enjoy a dip that’s free from preservatives and additives. It’s not only delicious but also made with natural ingredients.
You can customize this sweet and sour condiment with flavors you like the best. Feel free to make it more sweet, sour, or even add in red chili flakes for a spicy flavor.
Making food from scratch is incredibly rewarding, and that’s what Thai cuisine is all about.
Tamarind sauce is great for meal prep, you can make a large batch at once and save time for later. Since it’s made with fresh ingredients, you can store it for up to 2 weeks. You can even freeze some for later use.
You’ll learn how to make tamarind extract, which can be used in my other recipes.
This tamarind sauce is gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan!

Ingredients

For the exact measurements, please scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the page.

To extract the concentrate

Tamarind pulp and water in clay dishes on a banana leaf, with a few flowers.

Tamarind pulp – Tamarind pulp is the sticky fruit of the tamarind pod. When cooked with water, you can drain it to extract tamarind concentrate.
Water

To make the sauce

Tamarind extract and water in clay cups. Palm sugar, light soy sauce, and dark soy sauce in plastic cups. Everything is presented on a banana leaf with flowers on it.

Tamarind extract
Light soy sauce – Light soy is a key ingredient of Asian cuisine, often used for adding saltiness and umami to many Asian dishes.
Dark soy sauce – Dark soy sauce adds a rich color, a subtle sweetness, and depth to the sauce.
Palm sugar – This sweetener is a key ingredient in Thai cuisine, with a subtle caramel-like flavor. Alternatives are jaggery powder, white sugar, brown sugar, or agave.
Water

Step-by-step instructions

In this tamarind sauce recipe, we’ll first make tamarind concentrate by cooking pulp with water and then extracting the liquid. It can also be soaked for several hours or overnight, but cooking it increases the shelf life.

Then, the liquid is cooked with traditional Thai ingredients, infusing it with umami and sweet and sour flavors.

Total Time: 30 minutes

Place a pot or non-stick pan over medium heat on the stovetop. Add water and tamarind pulp. Cook and stir as the mixture simmers. The tamarind pulp will dissolve and blend with the water, increasing in thickness and reducing in volume. When it has thickened and the water has reduced, it will be ready.
The next step is to extract the liquid. Place a sieve over a bowl and pour the tamarind concentrate through the sieve. Press down and move the pulp until all liquid is extracted. If needed, you can add a splash of water and briefly cook again to extract more liquid.
Then, heat a pot over medium heat. Combine the extracted tamarind liquid, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, palm sugar, and water in the pot. Stir and cook the mixture. The mixture will thicken, and transform into a rich, dark brown color with a glossy glaze once ready. Serve immediately.

How to serve

To serve this sweet and tangy accompaniment, present it in a small bowl like a sauce cup. I paired my dipping sauce with grilled pork, and it was just perfect! I believe it would do great with grilled chicken or shrimp as well.

Alternatively, you can pair it with fried foods, chips, dumplings, rice paper rolls, calamari, the possibilities are endless.

Tamarind sauce can also be drizzled over dishes, like salads or fresh greens and vegetables.

How to store

Thai Tamarind sauce will last you a long time, like a couple of weeks, when stored correctly in your fridge.

Keep it in an airtight container or a glass jar like a mason jar. Make sure to use a fresh spoon each time you use it.

To freeze: Transfer the sauce to a freezer-safe container and thaw in the fridge.

Fun facts

When it’s the tamarind season, there are countless pods hanging on one tree. Although this might sound strange to some, I love to pluck the pods and simply eat the fruit on its own.
The wood of the tamarind tree has a reputation for burning quickly. In Thailand, tamarind trees are often chopped down to use as firewood. Since the tree is abundant in Isan, tamarind wood is used to start our cooking fires.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ’s)

What does tamarind taste like?

Tamarind has a distinct tangy flavor, combining sour and sweet notes. Its sourness is subtle, not as sharp as lemons. Think of it as a gentle, lingering tartness. There’s also a hint of fruitiness similar to dates.

Is this tamarind sauce spicy?

No, this recipe is not spicy. Instead, it is subtly sweet, tangy, and sour. For a spicy alternative, see this spicy Thai tamarind dipping sauce.

How to use tamarind sauce?

Tamarind sauce can be used as a condiment to enhance the flavor of your dishes. You can use it as a dipping sauce for appetizers like springs rolls, samosas, fresh vegetables, and more. Drizzle it over salads or grilled meat for a sweet and tangy flavor. Add it to stir-fries, noodle dishes, or use it as a meat marinade. These are just one of the many options to use it.

Is tamarind good for you?

Yes, tamarind is a fruit with several health benefits. It’s rich in essential nutrients, it’s anti-inflammatory, helps with digestive health, has antioxidant properties, and the list goes on. It’s for good reason that tamarind has been a traditional medicine for ages. As with most food, individual responses to tamarind can vary.

More Thai sauces you’ll love

Nam prik noom – A delicious vegan dip with roasted chilies.
Green chili sauce – Easy to make with green chilies, fish sauce, fresh lime juice, and fresh herbs.
Fruit dipping sauce – Made with dried shrimp, traditionally used as a dip for sour green mangoes.
Sweet chili – Nam chim kai is easy and versatile, you can pair it with just about anything.

If you love this tamarind sauce recipe, please leave a star rating and/or a comment below!

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