Tamar hindi means, rather charmingly, the date of India, which is what Arab traders called the sticky brown pods of the tamarind tree. The drink made from them belongs first to Egypt and the Levant, where vendors once poured it from tall brass jugs, but it has long since crossed the Gulf. In Qatar it is a fixture of Ramadan: when the sun sets and the fast is broken, a jug of something cold, sweet and sour sits on the iftar table, and in Doha the sweet shops and cafes put tamarind juice on their Ramadan menus every year.

Its appeal is easy to understand. Tamarind is fruity and sharply sour, like a cross between dried apricots and lemon, and with enough sugar and a great deal of ice it becomes one of the most refreshing drinks in the region. The Qatar Grand Prix runs after dark at Lusail, but the evenings are still warm, and a pitcher of this is a better companion to a long race than anything fizzy.

The tamarind concentrate

Ingredients

• 7 oz (200 g) tamarind block
• 4 cups (950 ml) water

Method

1. Break the tamarind block into roughly 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces with your fingers and put them in the saucepan. Pour in the 4 cups of water and leave to soak for 20 minutes so the pulp softens.
2. Set the pan over medium heat and bring it to a gentle simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring and pressing the pulp against the side of the pan with the wooden spoon every couple of minutes to break it up.
3. Take the pan off the heat and leave it for 10 minutes, until cool enough to handle comfortably. Then mash the pulp once more with the spoon, or with clean hands, rubbing it between your fingers to free it from the seeds and fibers.
4. Set the sieve over the large bowl or jug and pour the mixture through it. Press hard on what is left in the sieve with the back of the spoon, scraping the underside of the sieve now and then, until only seeds and dry fibers remain. Throw these away.

The drink

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup (135 g) sugar
• 4 cups (950 ml) cold water
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon rose water
• plenty ice cubes
• 6 thin lemon slices or mint sprigs

Method

1. While the concentrate is still warm, add the sugar and stir until it has completely dissolved, about 1 minute. Warm liquid dissolves sugar far more easily than cold.
2. Stir in the cold water, lemon juice and rose water, if using. Taste: it should be clearly sweet and clearly sour at the same time. Add more sugar a tablespoon at a time if it is too sharp, or a splash more water if it tastes heavy.
3. Pour into the pitcher, cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until very cold. A little sediment may settle on the bottom; that is normal.
4. Stir well to mix in any sediment. Fill the glasses with ice, pour the tamar hindi over, and add a lemon slice or a sprig of mint to each.

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