It’s hard to say how it happens, but sometimes a food ingredient that’s been around for ages manages to step away from the sidelines and into the spotlight. Remember the obsession with sourdough at the height of the pandemic? Or when everyone suddenly got into Topo Chico and then Ranch Water?
This year, that item seems to be tamarind. The pod-like fruit that hails from Africa, India and the Middle East with a tangy, sweet-sour flavor—a mainstay in various regional cuisines for centuries—is now showing up all over the place. Most recently, spice brand McCormick named it the 2024 “Flavor of the Year” and released a new Tamarind & Pasilla Chile Seasoning blend. It also teamed up with Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer to offer several limited-edition, tamarind-infused menu items next month.
Chances are the designation is influenced by recent internet trends. Sometime last summer, tamarind margarita recipes started making the rounds on social media—and have since blown up. On Tiktok, #tamarindmargarita boasts nearly 70,000 views; one video alone, by user @jennymartinezzz, has more than 55,000 likes. On Instagram, more than 2,500 posts bear the hashtag. One food influencer account, @fedandfit, declared its recipe, “One of the freaking most delicious cocktails I’ve ever tasted.”
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Given the drink’s widespread appeal, we decided to come up with our own, elevated version. Our tamarind margarita recipe hews closely to a traditional margarita, but with high-quality, flavorful ingredients.
This Article was originally published on Wine Enthusiast
