15 Recipes That Use Tamarind

Slow Cooker Chicken Massaman Curry
Photo by JenniferCooks.

If you've bought a block of tamarind pulp or a jar of tamarind paste, you may be wondering how you'll ever use it all. Well, these recipes with sour-sweet tamarind may convince you that you've found your new go-to ingredient.

01 of 16

Authentic Pad Thai

Authentic Pad Thai
MAMAMIMI

"Extremely delish! I doubled the tamarind mixture after reading other reviews, and it was a good amount," says Claire H. "I will be making it again very soon!"

02 of 16

Tamarind Sauce Fish Curry

Tamarind Sauce Fish Curry
Julie Julie

This fish curry, also called chepala pulusu, hails from Andhra, India. Its signature tang comes from tamarind.

03 of 16

Tamarind Tofu with Vegetables and Soba

Tamarind Tofu with Vegetables and Soba
Buckwheat Queen

"Delicious. Absolutely delicious. I used whatever vegetables I had on hand," writes Buckwheat Queen, who used tamarind paste instead of tamarind pods.

04 of 16

Black Chana with Potato

Black Chana with Potato
Buckwheat Queen

This classic kala chana (black chickpeas) recipe melds the flavors of tamarind, ginger, cumin, coriander, and turmeric.

05 of 16

Tamarind Agua Fresca

Tamarind Agua Fresca
Kim's Cooking Now

"So delicious and refreshing! I used homemade tamarind paste to make this agua fresca. It's just like the one I used to drink in Mexico when I was little. My opinion is that the lime and oranges are only for garnish, as tamarind is tangy enough," Jennifer Aleman says.

06 of 16

Sweet and Sour Tamarind Sauce

Sweet and Sour Tamarind Sauce
Nicholas Butts

"This is my version of a popular sauce that can be tweaked in a lot of ways to suit one's taste, either more to the sweet side or sour side. It's great with small fried items like fried tofu, egg rolls, or samosas," recipe creator Lana says.

07 of 16

Slow Cooker Chicken Massaman Curry

Slow Cooker Chicken Massaman Curry
Photo by JenniferCooks.

Recipe creator JenniferCooks sums it up: "This slow cooker chicken Massaman curry is creamy, slightly spicy, nutty, and rich with flavor."

08 of 16

Marty's Thai Chicken Satay

Marty's Thai Chicken Satay
Audrey Doyle

Our home cooks report that these marinated chicken skewers win over big groups and picky little eaters.

09 of 16

Lamb Madras Curry

Lamb Madras Curry
Timmi59

"Not as difficult as it looks. Gathering all the ingredients was harder for me than the actual cooking, but give yourself plenty of time if preparing it for company. It's an outstanding dish, and I got rave reviews," Stephanie says.

10 of 16

Garlic-Tamarind Pork Loin

Garlic-Tamarind Pork Loin
Soup Loving Nicole

Planning a barbecue? This marinated pork loin will stand out with its zesty tamarind marinade.

11 of 16

Myanmar Chicken and Jackfruit Curry

chicken with jackfruit curry served with rice
Allrecipes

"A great alternative to Indian curries," reviewer Cherry Liu says. "I love jackfruit, so I was sold by the title. I used half garam masala and half regular yellow curry powder. I garnished with fresh bamboo shoot, cilantro, and a red rice I made with achiote molido and Szechuan pepper berries I had available in the kitchen."

12 of 16

Penang Pork Satay

grilled pork skewers on a white ceramic platter
Chef John

Ingredients like ginger, turmeric, garlic, soy sauce, chili powder, and tamarind join forces in this Malaysian-inspired pork skewers recipe.

13 of 16

Egg Kulambu

Egg Kulambu
foodlover

A staple dish in Sri Lanka, kulambu accentuates the flavors of tamarind with some added sweetness and spice.

14 of 16

Singapore Chili Crabs

"My friends in Singapore tell me they serve this with at least twice the amount of sauce, and a type of fried roll to soak up the goodness with," Chef John says. "So, if you want to rock the chili crab like a Singaporean, then you should probably double the sauce ingredients."

15 of 16

Lamb Shank Vindaloo

Lamb Shank Vindaloo
Lamb Shank Vindaloo. Chef John

"I've been trying to recreate the Lamb Vindaloo I get from my favorite Indian restaurant for years and this recipe proved to be a great starting point... This resulted in the best Indian meal I have ever made!" says bdkusler.

16 of 16

State of Home Cooking

State of Home Cooking

We're serving up and celebrating the biggest home-cooking trends from the most enthusiastic cooks we know: our community. We crunched the data from 1.2 billion annual Allrecipes.com visits and 2.5 billion annual page views. Then we dug even further, surveying Allrecipes cooks about what's in their carts and fridges, on their stovetops and tables, and on their minds. Tamarind is just one of the topics they're most curious about. See more of the "State of Home Cooking" special report.

Was this page helpful?
You’ll Also Love