Tamarindo seafood soup

2020-01-18

Tamarindo (Eng. = tamarind)

Tamarind is the bean-like fruit from the Central American tamarindo tree. It can be prepared from scratch, but the beans are quite pricey in the US and it's a chore to prepare it.

Tamarind is available as a puree concentrate, as an apple-dip paste and as an Indonesian instant-soup package. My favorite is the candy-apple paste. It keeps forever and is easy to measure to taste.

processed tamarind:

Pic1: puree
Pic2: paste
Pic3: instant soup

The puree can be purchased online.
The apple-dip paste is my preferred and available at our local Peppers grocery store.
There's also a not-so-hot variety.
Be very careful with the instant soup, it's mostly citric acid, extremely sour and no tamarind flavor that I can discern. Use carefully to taste. A quarter of the package is probably more than enough.
Of course, I keep forgetting and dump the entire package, and then have to dilute the soup. :-(

Tamarindo paste is a very popular sweet & sour candy with chile in Mexico that is also available in local stores here in Deming, NM or nationwide in stores that carry Hispanic foods.

Tamarindo sauce is well-known in Mexico, but one thing I have not seen there is tamarindo soup.

For that we apparently have to go to the Philippines where it's called sampalok and even further to South-east Asia. Sinigang sa sampalok soup mix can be purchased online but I recommend using tamarindo paste for a more original flavor. When I tried the powdered version, the citric acid completely overpowered the tamarindo flavor.

It is possible to make tamarindo paste from scratch with the bean-like pods they sell at the store, but it is probably easier and cheaper to buy pre-made tamarindo puree or paste. The chile they put in the paste enhances imo the soup/stew anyway. Don’t overdo it with the tomatoes; you don't want it to become a tomato soup. I didn’t use any at all.

See also: tamarindo beef tongue soup.

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need for quarts = 6+ servings:

2-4 tbsp. tamarindo paste
8 cups water
seafood stock or bouillon
1 lb. shrimp, mixed seafood or meat of choice.
I used canned seafood cocktail and frozen shrimp
1 lb. vegetables of choice.
I used green & yellow beans, bell peppers & onions
S&P, 1-2 shrimp bouillon cubes

optional:

2-4 roma tomatoes
2-4 limes, juiced

Pic1: tamarindo soup with seafood

Directions

Dissolve the tamarindo paste in 2 quarts of water.
Bring to a boil.
Add vegetables and seafood. Season to taste.
Bring to a boil again. Reduce heat and simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes.
Add lime juice to taste. Adjust seasoning to taste.
Serve immediately. Enjoy.

Pic2: seafood in tamarindo broth
Pic3: add vegetables
Pic4: serve and enjoy

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more and avemariasongs.org

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more
and avemariasongs.org