Dulces de Tamarindo (Tamarind Chilli Sweets)

Name: Dulces de Tamarindo (Tamarind Chilli Sweets)
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 200g tamarind pulp (seedless block), broken up; 4 tbsp hot water; 150g caster sugar; 0.25 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp mild chilli powder; 50g caster sugar, for rolling; 1 tsp mild chilli powder, for rolling; 1 tsp lime juice

Sticky, sweet and sour tamarind balls rolled in chilli sugar, a favourite Mexican street sweet.

Time30 mins plus resting
LevelEasy
Costabout £0.13 a head

Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.

24 servings

Ingredients

Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.

200 gtamarind pulp (seedless block)broken up
4 tbsphot water
150 gcaster sugar
¼ tspsalt
½ tspmild chilli powder
50 gcaster sugarfor rolling
1 tspmild chilli powderfor rolling
1 tsplime juice

Method

1
Put the tamarind pulp and hot water in a bowl. Leave for 10 minutes, then mash with a fork until soft. Pick out any stray seeds or fibres.
10 min
2
Add the 150 g sugar, salt, 0.5 tsp chilli powder and lime juice. Knead with clean hands for 3 minutes until you have a thick, stiff paste.
3
If it is too sticky to handle, chill for 20 minutes.
20 min
4
Mix the rolling sugar and 1 tsp chilli powder on a plate.
5
Roll the paste into 24 small balls, about the size of a walnut, then roll each in the chilli sugar to coat.
6
Leave on a tray for 1 hour to dry slightly. Store in an airtight tin for up to 2 weeks.

Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.