We can do a lot with tamarind! From refreshing tamarind drink to tamarind pork ribs, these are all so delicious. One more common combination with tamarind and pork is tamarind pork belly, a lovely dish for daily meals with rice and vegetables.

What is Tamarind Paste?

Tamarind is a tropical fruit that comes from the tamarind tree (Tamarindus indica). It is one of the popular ingredients in Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, and African cuisines, partly because tamarind is a native fruit here.Thanks to its unique tanginess, it is often used to add tartness and depth to dishes.

Tamarind comes in the form of a pod with a hard, brown shell that surrounds a pulp, which takes time to extract. The pulp is sticky and tangy, so you will just need 2-3 tamarind pods for a dish. Therefore, to preserve tamarind for a longer period, people make tamarind paste from the pulp. Tamarind paste can last in the fridge for 3-6 months or even longer.

When you buy tamarind paste, there are usually two types: with and without seeds. The texture and flavor of both types are the same, except that you’ll spend a bit more time removing the seeds when making tamarind juice.

How does Tamarind Pork Belly taste?

The most prominent flavor of tamarind pork belly is the tanginess and fragrance of tamarind, followed by the flavor of pork belly, spices, and other condiments. The dish is often garnished with roasted peanuts to add an interesting crispiness to it.

You can serve tamarind pork belly with cooked rice, either white or brown. This seems to be the best combination for a meal. Actually, I tried this dish with rice vermicelli and sticky rice, but it was not a good match.

Ingredients for Tamarind Pork Belly

Below is the recipe for a plate of tamarind pork belly, enough for 4 people. You can double it to serve more people at a time. The ingredients include pork belly, shrimp, tamarind paste, shallots, tapioca starch, roasted peanuts, and condiments (fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, salt, cooking oil). For those who can’t eat fish sauce, you can skip it or use vegan fish sauce.

150g (5.3 oz) shrimp
200g (7 oz) pork belly
40g (1.4 oz) tamarind
2 shallots
40g (1.4 oz) roasted peanuts
10g (1 tbsp) tapioca starch
Seasonings: fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, salt, cooking oil

Cooking Instructions

Clean the shrimp, devein if desired, and marinate with 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and 1 tbsp tapioca starch. Cut pork belly into bite-sized pieces, and marinate with 1 tbsp fish sauce and 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce. Add 100g (3.5 oz) water to the tamarind and microwave for 30 seconds to warm the water, then mash the tamarind and strain to get the tamarind juice.

preparing ingredients to make tamarind pork belly

Peel and finely chop the shallots, then sauté in cooking oil until fragrant. Once the shallots are slightly golden, add the pork and stir-fry until firm.

stir fry pork belly to make tamarind pork belly

Because shrimp cooks faster than pork belly, wait until the pork is almost done before adding the shrimp. Add the shrimp and stir them quickly until all are well-cooked.

When the shrimp and pork are cooked, add the tamarind juice and simmer together. Adjust the seasoning with fish sauce (or salt) and sugar to taste (default: 1 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, you can adjust to your preference), and stir well. Adjust the seasoning to taste and turn off the heat.

simmer pork belly and shrimp with tamarind juice

Serve the shrimp and pork with the sauce on a plate, topped with roasted peanuts. It is most delicious when served with hot rice.

Tips for Perfect Tamarind Pork Belly

From my experience, I have a few tips to “troubleshoot” in case the dish’s flavor isn’t as desired. Typically, it’s easy to end up with tamarind pork belly that is too tangy, too sweet, too salty, or too tough.

Flavor: To control the tanginess, you should taste the tamarind juice before pouring it into the pan. Then, adjust the fish sauce and sugar added to the sauce. In case you’ve added too much tamarind juice, making the meat too tangy, add a bit of water to dilute the juice, then adjust the amount of sugar and fish sauce/salt to balance the flavor.
The Meat: The pork can be too tough to bite if you cook it for too short a time. Therefore, if the pork belly is still tough but the shrimp is well-cooked, remove the shrimp from the pan, then lower the heat and simmer the pork belly with tamarind sauce for a few more minutes. Keep an eye on the pan to prevent it from drying out or burning at the bottom.