Try this Easy Make-Ahead Tamarind Dipping Sauce. It's sweet, tart with a hint of spice - perfect with samosa, pakoras, and papadams. So much better than the store bought stuff!
Add Tamarind to a bowl and then enough hot water to cover it. Allow the tamarind to soak for about 30 minutes.
Squeeze the pulp by hand a little and then transfer the soaked tamarind to the blender jar and process. You may need to add about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of water for blending.
Turn off the heat and transfer the ingredients to blender and process until it is smooth.
Pass it through a mesh sieve to collect all the fiber on the top and the sauce at the bottom. Add a little water if needed.
Add the spice powders to the tamarind pulp, and stir to combine.
Place the pan on heat, bring the sauce mixture to a rolling boil over medium high heat and allow it to simmer for another 6-7 minutes.
Continue to cook further if you like it thicker.
Add the salt, Taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
Once the sauce has cooled down, transfer to a convenient glass jar or squirty bottle to serve.
Store the remaining sauce in freezer safe containers and freeze until needed.
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Notes
For Sweet Tamarind sauce, add up to 1 Cup of Jaggery to the recipe. You can either grate the jaggery or add the cubes.For Sweet Tamarind Dates chutney, add 1 Cup of Pitted Dates, 1 Cup of Jaggery to this recipe along with remaining spices.