Tamarind Pickle – Imli Achar
Ripe tamarind pulp, hand-crushed and folded into cumin, fennel and black pepper with just enough sugar to hold it together. Sharply sour first, warm and spiced after. No preservatives.
- Sharp and sour with a sweet finish
- No oil — tamarind and sugar
- Tamarind, cumin, ajwain
- Bengali home kitchen, Kolkata
- No preservatives
- No added acid
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About this jar
Tentul achar is for people who reach for the sour jar first. Ripe tamarind is crushed by hand into a coarse pulp — you can still feel the fibre in it — rather than machined into a smooth paste, which is what most commercial imli achar is.
The pulp is blended slowly with cumin, fennel, ajwain, coriander paste, bay leaves, black pepper and dried red chilli. A small amount of sugar goes in, not to sweeten it but to stop the sourness taking over completely.
Then it rests, and the spices work through the pulp until it stops tasting like tamarind plus spices and starts tasting like one thing. Small batches, no vinegar, no chemical preservatives.
Ingredients
Tamarind (tentul), sugar, cumin, ajwain, coriander paste, bay leaves, dry red chilli, fennel seeds, black pepper, salt, and our home spice blend.
What is not in it
- No added acid — the sourness is the tamarind itself
- No chemical preservatives
- No artificial colour or flavouring
- No thickeners or stabilisers
Allergen note
Prepared in a kitchen that also handles mustard, sesame and nuts. Suitable for vegetarians.
Taste & texture
What you will taste
Sour, immediately and without apology. The tang hits on contact and makes your jaw tighten for a second. The spices arrive a beat behind it, and a faint sweetness sits underneath holding the whole thing together rather than announcing itself.
Heat level
Low to medium. The chilli is there for warmth and depth, not to compete with the sourness.
Texture
Coarse and fibrous. Because the pulp is hand-crushed, there is body to it — this is not a smooth spread.
How it's made
Choosing the tamarind
Ripe pods, deseeded and cleaned by hand. Under-ripe tamarind is harsh rather than sour and never settles down, however long you rest it.
Crushing by hand
The pulp is worked by hand, not blended. A machine makes it smooth and flat; hand-crushing leaves fibre and body, and that texture is most of what makes this pickle worth eating.
Spicing
Cumin, fennel, ajwain, coriander paste, bay leaf, black pepper and dried chilli go in, followed by salt and a measured amount of sugar.
Resting
The mixture sits so the ground spices absorb into the pulp. This is the step that turns a sharp mixture into a rounded pickle.
Pairs well with
Everyday
Plain rice and dal is where this belongs. It cuts through anything rich and resets the palate between mouthfuls, which is exactly what a sour pickle is for.
Other ways
- With fried fish — tamarind and fish is an old Bengali pairing
- Alongside khichdi or roti
- Thinned with a little water as a quick chutney for chaat or samosa
- A small spoon after a heavy meal
Use less than you think. Half a teaspoon flavours a whole plate; a heaped spoon will take it over.
Storage & shelf life
Keeping it fresh
- Always use a clean, dry spoon. Water is what spoils a pickle, not time.
- Keep the layer of oil sitting above the pickle — it is the seal that preserves it.
- Store in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. Refrigerate after opening.
- Never store or serve pickle in aluminium, brass or iron. The salt and acid react with the metal. Glass, ceramic or food-grade plastic only.
Shelf life
Best within 9 months of the packing date unopened, and about 6 months once opened and refrigerated. The date is printed on the jar.
Travelling with it
Pickle is fine in checked baggage on Indian domestic flights. Cabin baggage falls under liquid and paste limits, so put the jar in your check-in bag and wrap it — and check your airline if you are flying international, as some countries restrict food imports.
Product details
Available in 200 g and 500 g glass jars. Tamarind pickle is concentrated and a jar lasts longer than you expect — the 200 g is plenty for one household to work through comfortably.
Every jar is sealed, wrapped and cushioned before it ships, because Indian courier handling is not gentle. If one arrives broken or leaking, send us a photograph within 48 hours and we will replace it.
| Taste | Sharp and sour with a sweet finish |
|---|---|
| Oil | No oil — tamarind and sugar |
| Key ingredients | Tamarind, cumin, ajwain |
| Recipe origin | Bengali home kitchen, Kolkata |
| Weight | N/A |
| Size | 200 g, 500 g |
About The Flavor Chapter
The Flavor Chapter is a small homemade pickle business run out of a kitchen in Kolkata, West Bengal. We make Bengali achar the way it has always been made at home — seasonal fruit bought locally, cold-pressed mustard oil, a spice blend handed down rather than bought in, and enough resting time for the two to meet.
We are not a factory. Every batch is made by hand in quantities small enough for one person to watch over the whole thing, which limits how much we can sell and is why some jars disappear for months at a time. Kul and chalta are winter fruit, so we make them in winter.
What we will not do: no chemical preservatives, no vinegar shortcuts, no artificial colour. A properly made pickle preserves itself in oil, salt and sugar — it does not need help from a laboratory.
Every order is sealed, double-wrapped and packed by hand before it ships across India. If a jar arrives broken, we replace it.
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How we make this pickle special
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1
Deseeded by hand
Whole tamarind is soaked and the seeds and fibre taken out by hand. This is the slow part, and it is why the pulp is smooth without being strained.
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2
Balanced against sugar, not acid
The sourness is the tamarind itself. We balance it with sugar only, so nothing has to be corrected with vinegar or citric acid.
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3
Roasted spices, ground fresh
Cumin, ajwain, fennel and black pepper are dry-roasted and ground on the day of making.
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4
Cooked to a spoonable set
It is cooked down until it coats a spoon and no further, so it stays soft enough to mix straight into rice.
Questions about this jar
How sour is tamarind pickle?
Properly sour, which is the point of imli achar. The sugar rounds it off at the end rather than hiding it, so the first taste is sharp and the finish is sweet.
Is there any added acid or vinegar in it?
No. All the sourness comes from the tamarind. There is no citric acid, no vinegar and no chemical preservative.
Does it contain oil?
No. This is an oil-free pickle set with sugar, which makes it lighter than a mustard-oil achar and easier to use as a chutney.
What do I eat imli achar with?
Rice and dal, khichdi, samosa and chaat, or as a dip with pakora. A spoon stirred into curd makes a quick chutney.
How long does an opened jar last?
Nine months with a dry spoon. Unopened, twelve months in a cool, dry cupboard away from sunlight.
Is it very spicy?
Mild. There is warmth from the roasted spices and a little chilli, but the sourness is the dominant note, not heat.
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