I ran out of tamarind paste the other day and I had to go and run to the store to get more, because you never know when you feel the need to use it. One of my favourite foods is Pad Thai.

A Tamarind fruit is shaped like a long bean, inside which is a sour pulp containing many seeds. This blog post is about how to make tamarind paste from tamarind fruit. I first came across tamarind when I was making pad thai and I fell in love with it from the first bite!

Dried tamarind pods can be purchased in every store, they are usually in the fruit isle, in a box. I have to say, not easy to spot at all.  The first time I left the store without it because I could not find it and didn’t know where to look for it.  I have done the paste 2 times now, and it lasts me about 4-6 months.  I only use it for Pad Thai. I usually only use 1 teaspoon of tamarind in my Pad Thai but lately I have used 2 and it is much tastier. You just need to experiment with it and see how you like it!

So this is how I make it. First, remove the shell, it has a pretty hard shell but it is crackable 🙂  And they look so weird 🙂

First time we did a photoshoot for the half – naked tamarind pod 🙂

Now remove the vine around them.

….and put them all in a sauce pan. I will tell you, it takes forever to clean them, so if you have helping hands near by, it will go much smoother 😉

Now just barely cover them with water. Bring to boil and boil for a few minutes. Turn off the heat and let them sit for 10 minutes—covered. It will turn into a medium mush but the seeds are still attached!

Now the fun part. Take out your strainer and over a pot or a bowl, put 3-4 tamarinds in a strainer at a time and with a spoon, try to press all the “puree” through the holes. It will take a long time as well! But it is so worth it!

When the first ones are done, throw away the seeds and repeat till all the tamarind is pureed. I add nothing to the mix, just pure tamarind.

I fill the long ice cube tray, because for me it is pre-measured, one strip is for 1 Pad Thai. Use whatever works for you, muffin tins or just saran wrap are good too.

And then off to the freezer it goes until I need to use it! It is good at least for 6 months, I’m pretty sure of that 😉