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Tamarind or imli comes hand in hand if we talk about my childhood.

If I go back to my teenage years in Pakistan, I have a very clear memory of the huge tamarind tree in our backyard. Whenever we had cousins or even friends meet up, the tamarinds were always the star of the party.

Whoever came to our house was a fan of the ever-flourishing and fruitful Tamarind tree!

Breaking the tamarind from the tree was also a full task to perform, but the end product was always worth the trouble.

My paternal great-grandmother was the one who planted this tree. She loved the shape of the leaves, smell and taste of the fruit. And I'm surely her granddaughter who equally cherishes the sweet tangy taste of tamarind.

When we were kids, we used to collect the tamarinds for my mother to make the tangy tamarind sauce or Imli ki chutney, what we call it in our native language.

Imli ki chutney was our favourite go-to chutney, we could pair it with anything, pakros, chaat, golgappe, samosa, you name it!

I was craving this traditional tamarind sauce so much that I called my mother for the heritage recipe, taken down from my great-grandmother.

Today's date should be marked in history as I'm sharing my family's secret, the Famous Tamarind Sauce!

Step By Step Guide To The Best Tamarind Sauce

My grandmother used to literally eyeball the ingredients every time and it always came out perfect!

But I'll try to give you the measurements for your ease but you can adjust the taste accordingly. Making your tamarind sauce at home is not only fun but also incredibly rewarding!

This tangy, sweet, and slightly sour sauce is a fantastic addition to many dishes, and the best part is that you can customise it to your taste. I make a large batch, freeze in the jars, and then some in an ice cube tray. A cube in gravy goes a long way!

Gather Your Ingredients

You will need:

Dried Tamarind- 150 gm
Water- 2 cups
Sugar- ¼ cup
Salt- 1 tablespoon or according to taste
Blackseeds- 1 teaspoon
Red chilli flakes- to taste.

Pre-cooking Step

Pre-planning is essential before you make your tamarind sauce.

Soak the dried tamarind in water the night before.
Keep it in a cool environment overnight.
This will make the tamarinds soft the next day and easy to deseed.
After soaking, squeeze the tamarind pods with clean hands and continue for 3 to 5 minutes. This will make the seed separate out from the pulp.
Use a strainer to remove the peels and seeds from the pulp, more water can be added in this step if you feel that the mixture is too thick to strain out.

Time To Get Cooking

After successfully deseeding the pulp, it's time to cook the sauce.
Take the pulp in a saucepan and let it come to a boil on high heat.
Once there is a boil, turn the heat to low, let it simmer and cook for about 30 minutes with mixing in between.
Once you notice that the sauce is thickening up, add salt, sugar and black seeds.
Let it cook for 5 more minutes and then turn the heat off and let it cool down before storing.

Storing

Tamarind sauce can be easily stored in a plastic squeeze bottle or a glass jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

If you are preparing a big batch at a time, I would recommend keeping half of it in the freezer.

You can defrost it and use it after the first batch is over. If the sauce is watery after defrosting, you can again cook it for 15 minutes to remove the excess water.

Best Ways to Enjoy Tamarind Sauce

Tamarind sauce, with its tangy and sweet flavour, is a delightful addition to many dishes!

There are countless ways to enjoy this versatile condiment that will surely tickle your taste buds.

One peculiar and less known use is in culinary. I often pop one cube into my kali daal or biryani masala for the extra zesty flavour.

As A Condiment/Chutney

One of the most popular uses is as a chutney for crispy samosas or pakoras. Just imagine biting into a golden, crunchy snack and then dipping it into a luscious tamarind sauce, pure bliss!

Tangy Chaats

As Pakistanis, we can devour chaat every day! And who can even have chaat without imli ki chutney?

Drizzle tamarind over chana chaat, samosa chaat, gol gappas to transform your favourite street food into an explosion of flavours.

The combination of tamarind sauce with crispy papdi, boiled potatoes, and yoghurt creates a mouthwatering experience that’s hard to resist.

Marinades Mix

Another fun way to enjoy tamarind sauce is by mixing it into your marinades for grilled meats or veggies.

It adds a unique twist that elevates the dish and makes every bite memorable. And let’s not forget about using it in salad dressings! A splash of tamarind sauce can brighten up any salad, giving it that extra zing.

So go ahead and get creative with tamarind sauce, it’s time to savour the joy it brings to our plates!