Summer is coming, my heart is filled with longing for tamarind seed dessert

Tamarind seed tea.

In the past, every summer, we kids would gather together to play all kinds of traditional games. The most memorable scene was the scene of flicking and clinking tamarind seeds on the hard ground. They were just shiny, jet-black tamarind seeds, but why was that game so attractive? After stressful school hours or when we finished our housework, we would all gather together, and our laughter would fill the neighborhood. That simple game had tightened many innocent friendships during our time in white shirts.

Those tamarind seeds, filled in aluminum cans or tins, when poured out, fell one after another, rustling and making a very pleasant sound. Especially when lying on the ground, playing and laughing, that refreshing feeling is still intact. Every time we flicked the tamarinds, the better kid would “eat” the whole full can, weighing down his arm, a small but priceless joy.

But summer is not just about playing with tamarind seeds. In my memory, summer is also associated with dishes made from tamarind. From the jar of mildly sour tamarind in the kitchen cupboard, the tamarind slices that my grandmother carefully arranged to cook sour soup, to the bowl of thick tamarind fish sauce mixed with dried fish. And then there is the fragrant tamarind jam that we would share with each other every time we went to class. The sweet and sour taste was so sweet that it made my tongue tingle, but I still found it enjoyable under the summer noon sun.

And most especially, every time summer comes, my heart yearns for my grandmother's unique tamarind seed sweet soup. The sweet soup that she carefully prepared for us when we visited her grandmother. To have that delicious bowl of sweet soup, she went through many meticulous steps. From selecting the dried tamarinds, picking each seed, washing them and drying them. Next is the step of roasting the tamarinds thoroughly, then diligently cracking each seed, removing the black outer shell, keeping only two pieces of pure white kernel.

After soaking the tamarind seeds overnight in ash water, they are cleaned again, selecting the intact, hard, chewy seeds with a characteristic nutty flavor. Then she carefully cooks them with fragrant sticky rice and sweet cane sugar. The tamarind seed dessert is so simple, but it contains her whole heart and ingenuity.

At first glance, the tamarind seed sweet soup looks similar to white bean sweet soup, but when you taste it, you can feel the difference. The fatty and fragrant taste of sticky rice blends with the nutty, chewy taste of tamarind seeds, a little sweetness of powdered sugar and the richness of coconut milk, all creating an unforgettable hometown flavor. That sweet feeling spreads, gradually softening down the throat, leaving an indescribable aftertaste, like a gentle country song.

That rustic tamarind seed sweet soup has been deeply ingrained in my childhood memories. Every time summer comes, sitting under the windy porch, listening to the cicadas chirping on the green tamarind branches, my heart is filled with memories of those innocent days. I also remember the clusters of bright red phoenix flowers in the school yard, the laughter of friends after the first rain of the season. And in that space, the sweet taste of tamarind seed sweet soup seems to be even more intense, carrying with it the warm “sweetness of the countryside”.

Suddenly, the sweet sour taste of the candied tamarinds from those days came back, making my heart yearn for the happy and sad memories of my student days every summer. I miss the red dirt roads running to school, I miss the summer afternoons when we enjoyed tamarind jam, tamarind soaked in licorice.

No matter how many summers have passed, the tamarind seed sweet soup still retains the familiar flavor as the day my grandmother cooked it. Every time summer comes, my heart yearns for it, a sweet and lingering nostalgia. And perhaps, in that sweet and rich taste, there are also hidden wonderful uses that tamarind brings, as proven by folk medicine and scientists .

HAI NGUYEN

Source: https://baobariavungtau.com.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/202505/he-ve-long-nao-nao-nho-mon-che-hot-me-1042695/