Tamreh Hendi ~ Tamarind
Anyone who has lived in Iran as a child has undoubtedly experienced the awesomeness that is Tamreh Hendi, Tamarind. I can’t even begin to describe the excitement that the end of each school day brought to us kids, not only because we were free to go home, but also because we would run to go buy Tamreh Hendi to eat on our way home.
In my case I took the school bus home every day and our bus driver would often stop down the street from where our school was to let us get off and buy some type of haleh hooleh, junk food. It was pretty cool of him to make the quick stop for us kids. But I suppose that it paid off for him to do that because we were too busy eating our goodies to make noise and cause havoc!
During our stops I would alternate between my two favorites Tamreh Hendi and Pofak, the Iranian version of Cheese Puffs.
Tamreh Hendi was always packaged in a plastic wrap and we just sucked the tamarind right out of it.
I can’t begin to tell you how exciting it is for me now that I no longer live in Iran to find Tamreh Hendi at Persian stores. This brand that my local store carries is produced and packaged in Iran.
It’s just like when I was a kid, with the pits in with the pulp! When I buy them, I go right back to my childhood!
I remove the label and push up the tamarind towards the top of the package.
With my teeth I tear off a piece of the wrapping on one of the top corners.
See now there is a whole where you can suck the tamarind out. But you have to have to watch out for the pits!
Oh yes! I loooove tamarind as it is a wonderful combination of sweet and sour! So good!
How many of you have fond memories of buying Tamreh Hendi after school?
February 24, 2010
Yes yes delicious. Along with Lavashak, tamre hendi was a favourite. My mother would not allow pofak as she was on the raw/vegetarian kick waaay back then and pofak was just too unhealthy, but I secretly got my hands on a few of those red bags. By any chance, do you remember that marshmallow candy Negro Kiss? So not P.C but that along with Pofak were my two favourite forbidden junk foods!
February 24, 2010
Ask your Mum, for sure she remembers Agha yek gheran , who used to sell us all kind of halleh hooleh for 1 rial, his stand was close to the our school gates.
Thank you dear for all those sweet memories !
February 24, 2010
Was this a Golestan K bus by any chance? Sometimes our bus driver would stop at the corner bakery(noonvayi) near my house for hot barbari bread-I can still taste it-hot and crunchy just out of the oven!
On another note, In San Diego where I live, I can’t seem to find tamreh hendi with the seeds inside…they are all pitted, and it’s just not the same- so I buy the fresh ones when I find them-have you tried that?
February 25, 2010
@ Marjan, I love lavashak too! don’t remember the marshmellow candy but I do remember the long tubs with flavored sugar in them.
@ Vivi, I will definitely ask my mom!
@ Mina, I went to Farkhondeh Elementary, I think the post revolution name of it was Kalantari…but I could be wrong…
February 25, 2010
here is a link to Negro kiss
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate-coated_marshmallow_treats
and better than this used to be the frozen Vitakrem from madam, your mother remembers this one for sure !
February 25, 2010
Thank you Vivi Khanoom, it doesn’t trigger back memories, but I am sure I have had it when I was a kid since I have always loved chocolate. 🙂
February 25, 2010
I loved Vitakrem. It was imported from some other country, very yammy; real ice-cream covered with wafer and a layer of chocolate on top. Any body knows where it was coming from? It was sold at my school along Footaina (Garbanzo pea’s powder mixed with sugar). By the way retro goodies are coming back!
February 25, 2010
i love tambre hendi , kashk, albaloo khoshkeh, nokhodchi-keshmesh, pofak…those were the best snacks back then and then there was the akbar mashdi ice cream and noon-khameie…see what you’ve started here! now i’m starving, got to go and eat something!
February 25, 2010
@ Soraya, don’t remember Vitakrem, but ice cream in wafer covered in chocolate sounds awesome!
@ Azita, sorry for making you hungry, but those were days! 🙂
February 25, 2010
Wow, what cool bus drivers you all had. So lucky. I LOVE tamarind. Do you guys ever eat the homemade fruit roll-up type of thing made with tamarind paste? Love those!
Speaking of tamarind, sometimes I make a tamarind-lamb stew. Delish. Will have to post that one soon.
February 25, 2010
Bria, I thought my bus driver was the only cool one, but apparently not!! The tamarind lamb stew needs to be posted ASAP!!!
February 26, 2010
O Tamre Hendi. You’re so lucky to live in California and have these things around. Actually Tamre Hendi was not forbidden in our house, since my dad was from the south (Bushehr) and my mom wasn’t. So he loved introducing anything south related to us and Tamre Hendi was one of them. Of course we couldn’t buy them on our own.
Those marshmallow candies Marjan mentioned we called them Winter Ice Cream (Bastani Zemestaani) and they were still popular at least till I came here (7 years ago).
March 1, 2010
Ok, I will procure some tamarind and proceed ASAP. I’ve put my order into my supplier 😉 (Just kidding–just a well-connected source in the restaurant biz who sometimes hooks me up with discounts.)
June 12, 2010
hello you guys
i’m from germany and i just found your site….
i’m searching desperatly fpr this tpe of tamarind could you please tell me where to order maybe? and i’D love to know where you bought it from and if you could give me any advise where i can order or buy it maybe? best regards
June 12, 2010
Hello Shirin, welcome!! I did a quick search for Tamreh Hendi and could not find any where online. Let me do some more research and see what I come up with: 🙂
June 26, 2010
to Shirin,
you’d perhaps find them in Pakistani/Indian shops. or even Arabs may have them. Alternatively the Asian/Middle Eastern section of large super markets may have them.. good luck
December 9, 2010
I’m not Iranian, but I love Tamarind!
In Trinidad, seeing as they have alot of indo-chinese influence, tamarind is a very popular fruit you can just eat like candy or cook with.
I live in london, but I satisfy my craving for this awesome fruit by buying tamarind juice just from those mini supermarkets, buying a cooking block of it from any supermarket, buying a whole box of the whole fruit from the street market (anywhere there’s a large asian population really) or from Trinidadian restaurants who usually sell tamarind balls or you can get tamarind chutney with your paratha or pholourie. Alot of oriental grocers sell it too. I’m sitting here munching through a large box of whole fruit right now. It’s SO addictive. I love that it tastes just as good naturally as artificial candies like haribo, not like other fruits (like sharon fruit) that claim to be as sweet/tasty but disappoint kids. I like a good mix of sweet and sour- I usually get ones grown in thailand, they definitely don’t need any sugar sprinkled on them or anything. I also get tamarind paste from the oriental store and add boiling water for a super-tangy hot juice drink <3 I LOVE IT!! (Just watch out for weevils and other bugs in the fruit…)
December 10, 2010
Ebo, thanks so much for sharing your love for Tamarind!! I love how many of us from different countries have a love affair with Tamarind and each eat it in different ways!
January 27, 2011
Last weekend I surprised my boyfriend with a dish from his homeland- Bandar Abbas in the South of Iran. I made Ghalieh Mahi – and this dish used loads of tamarind! 😀 Even though I am not an Iranian, I am used to cooking with tamarind so making Ghalieh Mahi with tamarind isn’t too difficult for me. I just love the sourness from the tamarind. Where I come from, we use tamarind for a lot of stuff! A good remedy for sorethroat: mix some tamarind with warm water- drink it! You’ll be healed in no time! Another of my local favourite (which my Bandari boyfriend also fancies) is grilled fish with Tamarind dip. Chop some onions, tomatoes, chillies and corriander leaves- mix with tamarind that has been mixed with water. squueze some lime, add salt to taste!
August 26, 2011
Hi Sanam,
I was looking for a perfect Tahdig-recipe as I really fell in love with it, when I first tried it and by that I found your blog.
All I can say is: GOOD JOB! Love your step-by-step descriptions in combination with the pictures!
Your entry about Tamreh Hendi just brought back some childhood memories.:-)
Being of Eritrean origin, but raised in Germany, I can remember my mom making a drink out of it in summer. It was sooo refreshing!
Haven’t had it for too long, guess I have to ask her to make it again next time I get home.;-)
Greetings from Germany,
Selam
August 26, 2011
Selam, so glad I can be of help!! Keep cooking and do share the tamarind drink!!!!!!!!!!
October 11, 2014
Mmmmm I do this too!