Tamarind Sauce (Sốt me)

August 11, 2018

Tamarind Sauce (Sốt me) © kvalifood.com

A sweet-sour Vietnamese tamarind sauce made by cooking tamarind paste with date paste and sugar. The dates add natural sweetness and a thicker body, smoothing out the sharp sourness of the tamarind. This is a common dipping sauce for fried foods and spring rolls.

Ingredients

120 g date paste
300 g pure tamarind paste
1 tsp sugar*

Directions

Combine the date paste, tamarind paste, and sugar in a small saucepan.
Heat over medium-low heat, stirring, and let the mixture simmer for 3-4 minutes until everything is blended and warmed through.
Taste the sauce - if it’s too sour, add more sugar. The tartness varies between brands of tamarind paste.

Notes

Keeps for about 1 week in the refrigerator.
The asterisk on the sugar in the ingredients means “to taste” - some tamarind pastes are much more sour than others, so you may need more.
Use store-bought tamarind paste or make it from pulp using the tamarind paste recipe in this collection.