Tamarind

Health Benefits:

Aids in digestion
Aids in weight loss
Fights free radicals
Helps cure dysentary
Lowers blood pressure
May reduce cholesterol
May regulate heart rate
Relieves constipation

Nutrition:

Serving size: 1 fruit; Calories: 5; Fat: 0g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 1mg; Carbs: 1.2g; Fiber: .1g; Sugars: 1.2g; Protein: 0.1g; Potassium: 0%DV; Vitamin A: 0%DV; Vitamin C: 0%DV; Calcium: 0%DV; Iron: 0%DV

Did You Know?

• You don't have to harvest tamarinds right away. Tamarinds may be left on the tree for as long as 6 months after maturity so that the moisture content will be reduced to 20% or lower

Ways to Eat:

• Raw
• Powered (added to meats or rice)
• As a drink

Farming Trivia:

• The tamarind is native to tropical Africa and grows wild throughout the Sudan
• Sometime during the sixteenth century, tarmarind was introduced into America and today is widely grown in Mexico
• Tamarind ade has long been a popular drink in the Tropics and it is now bottled in carbonated form in Guatemala, Mexico, Puerto Rico and elsewhere