Under the Tamarind Tree

Florida’s subtropical climate with lots of sunshine and warm temperatures make it easier to grow your favorite tropical fruit trees such as succulent mangos, lychees, sugar apples (sweetsop) jackfruits, carambolas, dragon fruits and papayas, just to name a few. Backyard growers are currently enjoying an abundant harvest of the ever-popular mango fruit.

But what about tamarind? Scientifically, they are known as Tamarindus indica and are native to Eastern Africa. If you were born in the tropics, like I was, tamarind season brings back a lot of memories and a taste of home. Many Asian cuisines include a long tradition of eating and cooking with tamarind fruit, and as a go-to ingredient for salsas, chutneys, sauces, curries and even pad Thai. Tamarind is what gives Worcestershire sauce its unique savory and sweet distinct tang!

Here on Marco, the tamarind tree starts putting out its blossoms in early spring and the pods are ready for harvest before the rainy season. The blossoms are pale yellow with reddish veins resembling a small orchid and are mildly fragrant. The tree has a spreading feature resembling an acacia tree with small leaflets that fold at night. It produces a brown bean-shaped pod-like edible fruit. Usually, the fruits are high up the tree and as kids we would shake the branches to collect the edible pods. Or wait for a windy day! 

During my early morning runs, I settle on collecting the pods that have fallen on the sidewalk and on hot days, a quick taste of the edible pulp serves as a quick energy-boosting gel. Tamarind drink is also a popular refreshing “agua fresca” sold in Asian stores made of fresh ripe tamarind pods, shelled and simmered in water to soften and extract the pulp. 

Tamarind fruits are either half-ripe or ripe; the half-ripe fruit is greenish and has the consistency of an apple but tastes sour and tangy – the perfect ingredient for Asian sour soup. It is added to seafood, shrimp, pork or chicken and the taste of this soup depends on the tamarind as a souring agent and served with a bowl of steamy sticky rice. 

Also, as kids and even many adults, tamarind candy balls were another way to enjoy the flavor of tamarind. They are sweet, sour candies and some cultures add hot spices. Growing up, we always had a pocket full of tamarind candy snacks to satisfy our sweet cravings.

Many Floridians are not as familiar or accustomed to eating tamarind either as a fresh fruit or added to meat or fish. The fully ripe pod is sticky and almost candy-like. Some varieties of tamarind are tart and others are intensely sweet.

Many years ago, Donna Kay of Marco Island won a small Tamarind sapling as a raffle prize at a Naples Plant Society meeting. She knew nothing about tamarind and planted it close to her seawall. According to Donna, the tree got huge but it was a hardy tree. Hurricane Irma took it down, but the tree produced a second trunk. It also survived Hurricane Ian and came back healthy, producing hundreds of pods, but Donna also did not know the fruits were edible until her landscaper mentioned it to her. Some would describe the tasty pulp as a fusion of dates, apricots and lemon. Even if you don’t have access to fresh tamarind, Asian stores will have tamarind paste, candies and concentrates available.

Donna shared that she enjoys the Tamarind’s spreading canopy with its light feathery leaves allowing the dappled sun and light breeze through its branches. She also installed a hammock underneath where she can enjoy the balmy summer breezes and the occasional taste of a ripe tamarind pod. Donna added that her tamarind only requires light pruning to maintain its shape.

For many Marco tropical fruit enthusiasts, our Zone 10a, featuring warm temperatures and humid conditions throughout most of the year, is a perfect excuse to create a backyard of “tasty tropical treat” year-round. Also, be on the lookout for summer tropical fruit tasting events giving you the chance to explore the flavors of fruits from regions far and near.