What is Tamarind and How Can you Use it?

Pods of tamarind in my Berlin Asian storeThe disadvantage of growing up not only in a house where food was the least priority - we had books, after all, lots of them - but also the traditional tastes were very simple - garlic was part of (almost) everything so it didn't count as a 'spice' and adding...

An Exotic Bowl: The Berkeley Bowl Cookbook

I am always curious to try unusual fruits and vegetables, because this diversity shows how rich and extraordinary our world is. However, when it comes to introducing them into the daily menu, my brave curiosity stops only at tasting them, one bit at a time. As for now, my best source of 'exotic' fruits...