aloo pie

Here’s another one of those spicy condiments I grew up enjoying with many of the street food sold outside the gates of my secondary school in San Fernando, Trinidad at recess and lunch time. Usually used as a dipping sauce for Pholourie and Saheena… and as a topping for doubles and aloo pies. But I think we most enjoyed it on it’s own, as a thick savory sauce when our taste buds craved something exciting (especially when we didn’t have enough money for the pholourie). You’ll find that I did stray a bit from the traditional type recipes, however you’ll enjoy the subtle complex flavors.

You’ll Need…

12-14 tamarinds
1/2 scotch bonnet pepper diced
1/2 onion diced
2 scallions diced
2 tablespoon chopped shado beni (or cilantro)
1/2 teaspoon salt (see note below)
2 tablespoon brown sugar
2 cloves garlic (diced or crushed)
2 1/2 cups water + 1 cup
1/2 lime (juice)

Note – depending on how tart (sour) your tamarind is you may need a bit more salt and brown sugar. If tamarind pulp (solid block, not the liquid) is available in your grocery store, it will save you having to remove the shell/seeds (would have already been removed).

Important! If doing this recipe according to a gluten free diet, be sure to go through the entire list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary requirements.

Crack the shell of the tamarinds and remove the pulp. Discard the shell and stringy bits, and get ready to cook. It will be sticky on your fingers.

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add the pulp, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool, so you can safely handle it.

As it simmers, prep you other ingredients (chop finely or puree).

With the boiled tamarind pulp cool, it’s now time to use your hand/fingers and remove the hard seeds on the inside (discard).

Place the pot back on a medium flame and add another cup of water – bring to a boil.

Now go in with all the other ingredients and after it comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and allow to cook for another 20 minutes.

At this point all the flavors should have combined nicely, so it’s time to use a blender or stick blender to puree it into a sauce (with texture). Or you can add a bit more water and allow it to cook longer until everything breakdown into the sauce consistency you like. Be sure to taste for salt and sugar and adjust accordingly as some tamarind can be a bit more tart than others. Tamarind chutney is supposed to be the perfect balance between tart, sweet and spicy!

You can place it in a glass container and store in the fridge for at least 1 week.

Sauces & Condiments Vegetarian

A Tantalizing Tamarind Sauce.

May 28, 2025July 12, 201142 Comments

tamarind sauce

After posting the tambran (tamarind) ball recipe a couple days ago (sweet spicy sour tambran balls) , I realize that I still had some tamarind left back so I decided to share this recipe with you guys. Originally when I told my mom I purchased some tamarind in a box at the Asian store, she jokingly said “buh son, dais not the real thing” (gosh trinbago accent sweet eh!). So she got my dad to go out and get some of the ‘real thing” for me and sent it down with my sister (they live in Toronto and I’m in Hamilton). Sure enough it was the “tart” or sour type of tamarind we’re accustomed too in the Caribbean, but already out of the hard shell-like exterior.

This tamarind sauce is used primarily as a condiment or topping for such things as saheena, aloo pie, pholourie and doubles. But I also recall (back to my school days again) a thicker version, with a sort of amchar massala undertone that was a hit with the kids at my primary school. Maybe I’ll post that recipe the next time I get some of the ‘real’ tamarind.

You’ll Need…

200 grams tamarind pulp (about 7 oz)
3 cloves garlic
1 scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
1 1/2 – 2 tablespoon brown sugar
2-3 leaves shado beni
1 1/2 cup water

* add some salt and extra sugar if you find that the finished sauce is overly tart.

Before I go further I must let you know that there are 2 variations of this recipe. The first being the way I’ll show you below, where I’ll simmer the sauce on the stove for 10-15 minutes. The 2nd method you’ll use the same ingredients, except no cooking is involved. You simply add everything to a blender and give it a good pulse. I like to cooked version better as I find that the pungent ingredients like the shado bein and garlic is infused within the sauce and has a much milder after-taste.

The first step is to crush the pepper, garlic and shando beni into a sort of chunky paste. I give those things a rough chop and work it well in my mortar and pestle.

tambran sauce

tambran sauce (2)

tambran sauce (3)

BTW, you’ll notice that my shado beni looks a bit starving… I’m just thankful I could get fresh shado beni here, so I’m not complaining. The next step is place the tamarind paste into a sauce pan with 1 1/2 cups water. Now using your fingers, (if you didn’t get seedless), work the pulp away from the seeds and try to crush the flesh between your fingers. It will get a bit messy so you can wear disposable gloves if you wish.

Now remove the seeds and discard. Place the saucepan on medium heat, add the sugar (pinch of salt) and the crushed pepper/garlic/shado beni to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Now turn the heat down to a gentle simmer and with the pot closed, allow to cook for about 10 to 15 minutes.

tambran sauce (4)

tambran sauce (5)

tambran sauce (6)

tambran sauce (7)

Stir every 2-3 minutes and if you find that it’s getting really thick, add a bit more water. You’re looking for a sort of thick tomato soup consistency (a little thinner than ketchup). Allow to cool before serving as the taste when it’s hot is totally different than when it’s cool. If when you taste it you find that it’s more tart (sour) than anything else, add a bit more sugar. It should be the perfect balance of tart, savory and spicy.

tambran sauce (8)

This tambran sauce rocks when you dip some saheena, aloo pie or pholourie into it!

Before you go I invite you to leave me your comments below.. even if it just to say hello. It’s always appreciated. And don’t forget to join us on facebook and do check out the cooking videos.

I almost forgot. I’m not sure how many of you saw the message I posted on Facebook, but I mentioned that if you’d like to post any cooking/food related questions to a certified chef, who’s traveled all over the world doing his culinary thing.. now is the time to do so. A couple weeks back we met with the Rhyming Chef (Philman George) for coffee and during that meeting he agreed to take time from his hectic schedule to answer any questions you guys may have. All you have to do is leave the questions in the comment section below and I’ll send them off to him. I’ll then post the answers on the website for everyone to participate in the discussion.

You can learn more about The Rhyming Chef at his site http://www.therhymingchef.com/ A super cool ‘soldier’ with a massive passion for the culinary culture and history of the Caribbean, especially his home island of Barbuda.

I urge you to post your questions below and do check out Philman’s website for some amazing tips and cooking videos.

Vegetarian

Trinbago Aloo Pie recipe.

March 5, 2012September 5, 201062 Comments

aloo pie

After many requests from readers I got my mom to help me with making this Aloo Pie recipe. Aloo is simply potato and though it’s called a pie, it’s not what most people outside Trinidad and Tobago envision when they hear the word pie. It’s basically potato filling in a dough, that’s deep fried and it’s one of the many quick delights you can buy at many of the street food vendors throughout the islands.

As I mentioned above, I had my mom’s help in making this dish as I find that I never learn to make dishes I don’t really like. As a kid on the islands, my thing was “doubles” and to be quite honest I can safely say that I’ve only had aloo pies about 4 times.

You’ll Need…

For the filling:

4 medium potatoes (boiled)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic
1/4 teaspoon geera (cumin powder)
1/4 hot pepper (optional)

For the dough:

1 3/4 cups flour (all purpose)
pinch salt
pinch self rising yeast (makes for a lighter dough)

* Edit: It was pointed out that I forgot to list the amount of water needed for making the dough. Use between 1/2 and 3/4 cup of water.

About 2 cups oil for frying (vegetable works great)

You have two options when it comes to the potatoes. You can peel, cut in half and boil till tender. Or you can cut in half, boil and peel after it’s cooled a bit. Basically… put the potato into a pan with enough water to cover and bring to boil. Then allow to boil gently until you can pierce it with a knife without any real resistance. As the potato boils, lets prepare the dough.

trini aloo pie recipe

In a bowl place all the ingredients mentioned above for the dough and add 1/2 of the water. Work well and add water as needed. You’re looking for a well worked dough, that’s smooth and somewhat firm. Allow this rest as least 15 minutes at room temperature and the bowl covered with plastic wrap.

making allo pie recipe

how to make aloo pie trini style

The potato should be fully cooked now. In a bowl, add the salt, garlic and hot pepper and crush to a fine paste, then add the cooked potato and mash. The goal is to have a smooth texture (no lumps). The final step in preparing the filling is to add the geera and stir everything well. You can use a mortar and pestle to crush the garlic and pepper, then use a potato masher to mash the potato.

mashing aloo for aloo pie

quick recipe for aloo pie

The next step is to make the dough ball we created 15 minutes ago into 4-5 smaller balls. Then dust your surface with flour and roll out with a rolling pin to form small circles about 6-8 inches in diameter. Add some of the potato filling we created to half of the circle (of dough), but leave room on the edges to allow us to seal the package. Flip the side that there’s no filling over and using a fork, press down to make a seal. You’re making 1/2 circle filled dough package (see pics below). When you seal with the fork, flip over and do the same thing on the other side, as you don’t want it opening during the frying process.

trinidad recipe aloo pie

dough for aloo pie

trinidad street food aloo pie

ingredients for aloo pie

making trini aloo pie

In a fairly wide pan, heat the oil on a medium high heat and then fry. Place into the oil (be careful) and within seconds, flip to the other side. This quick action helps achieve a perfectly shaped pie. Now cook for about 2-3 minutes on this side, then flip back to the side you started off on and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Basically you’re looking for a golden brown colour. If you find that it’s going dark fast, turn down the heat on the oil.

making aloo pie

recipe for aloo pie

trini aloo pie

trinidad aloo pie

I think it’s the geera that’s in this recipe that prevents me from never really giving it much of a chance, as it’s one of those spices that I just have no love for. I recall lunch time during my school days in Trinidad the kids would rush out to the food vendors to get their aloo pie and they would get the vendors to cut them open and put curry channa (chick peas) and that was usually topped with some sort of chutney or pepper sauce. Usually the hit was tamarind sauce.

Don’t forget to leave me your comments below, even if it’s just to say hello. It’s appreciated. And don’t forget to join us on Facebook, where you’ll get more insight into the true culinary culture of the islands. Click on the image below to get started.

Simple Tamarind Chutney Recipe.

A Tantalizing Tamarind Sauce.

Trinbago Aloo Pie recipe.

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