Amba

[Pam R]

I've had amba sauce or paste in a jar. Now I have amba powder and don't know what to do with it.

I have a couple of questions.

1. What is it exactly? Mango? Curry?

2. What do I do with the powder? Can it be easily transformed into the jarred stuff?

[Daniel Rogov]

Pam, Hi...

Basic ingredients are mango, mustard, cumin, fenugreek, chili peppers, turmeric, garlic and salt along with corn oil. Because the mango should be chunky, the sauce is not often fully smooth . Frequently at felafel and shwarma stands the sauce sits in a large bowl and the solid parts sink to the bottom, so best is to scoop some up with a long spoon. Hard to imagine amba in powdered form.....

Sorry, don't have a recipe as I always purchase mine at Gina's, the felafel stand opposite my newspaper (HaAretz) on Tel Aviv's Rehov Shoken.

Edited May 9, 2008 by Daniel Rogov (log)

[Pam R]

Thanks Daniel. I wonder if it's as simple as mixing some of the powder with water. I've asked some of my Israeli customers and they don't know what to do with it either.

[Milagai]

What an interesting food item! I've never heard of this item, though to my eyes it looks exactly like some kind of mango pickle or mango chutney, and the word "amba" means mango anyway in many Indian languages.

Could you tell me how it found its way to this area of the world (via WW II Indian troops like kushari reportedly did; trade links with Indian origin communities)?

Has it been around for decades or is it a recent innovation?

How is it used? On felafel? The combination sounds absolutely divine, and I am so intrigued to see that it replicates some guilty home pleasures (adding spicy chutneys or achaars to felafel sandwiches).

Who makes it? Is it locally made or imported?

Just a guess: maybe the powder is for the spice base, and you have to cut up or grate and add mangoes (do you use ripe/sweet or raw/sour mangoes?) to it somehow (saute? marinade?) to end up with the final product.

Thanks in advance

M

[Daniel Rogov]

Cannot speak to precisely how amba made its way to Egypt, Lebanon and Syria where it is sometimes found, but no mystery at all of how it made its way to Israel - like so many of the dishes here, amba made its way with immigrants from India where the sauce originated.

As to use - with street foods such as felafel and shwarma it will be found at almost every stanyd; in simpler but often quite good restaurants speciaizing in kebabs, hishliks, grilled sausages; and even in use with fine chefs whose presentation is a combination of their own cultural roots, local ingredients and sophisticated cookery techniques.

Some would say that the ideal felafel has packed into a pita bread - 6 felafel balls, those interspersed with tchina, sprinkled over with onions with sumac, one or another of a dozen hot sauces, amba, shredded white cabbage, perhaps a few bits of pickled carrots or cucumbers, and on and on...... One of the greatest pleasures of such sandwiches is matering the art of eating them without having the liquid and solid ingredients drip or drop onto one's shirt, blouse, trousers, skirt and/or shoes. A miracle, some might say, greater than the parting of the sea.

Whoops.....almost forgot.....here in Israel amba as either a sauce or a chutney is almost always made on the premises of the street-side stand or restaurant. A few have been known to buy it pre-prepared. At any rate, I have never befroe heard of powdered amba.

Edited May 10, 2008 by Daniel Rogov (log)

[Pam R]

That's the problem - nobody has seen it powdered before! At least not my customers. To be honest, I ordered the jars of amba, but for some reason I got the bags instead. I'll take a picture of it when I'm at work.

[Milagai]

Cannot speak to precisely how amba made its way to Egypt, Lebanon and Syria where it is sometimes found, but no mystery at all of how it made its way to Israel - like so many of the dishes here, amba made its way with immigrants from India where the sauce originated. 

As to use - with street foods such as felafel and shwarma it will be found at almost every stanyd; in simpler but often quite good restaurants speciaizing in kebabs, hishliks, grilled sausages; and even in use with fine chefs whose presentation is a combination of their own cultural roots, local ingredients and sophisticated cookery techniques.

Some would say that the ideal felafel has packed into a pita bread - 6 felafel balls, those interspersed with tchina, sprinkled over with onions with sumac, one or another of a dozen hot sauces, amba, shredded white cabbage, perhaps a few bits of pickled carrots or cucumbers, and on and on......  One of the greatest pleasures of such sandwiches is matering the art of eating them without having the liquid and solid ingredients drip or drop onto one's shirt, blouse, trousers, skirt and/or shoes.  A miracle, some might say, greater than the parting of the sea.

Whoops.....almost forgot.....here in Israel amba as either a sauce or a chutney is almost always made on the premises of the street-side stand or restaurant. A few have been known to buy it pre-prepared.  At any rate, I have never befroe heard of powdered amba.

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Thanks! very interesting, yes, the Indian migrant stream would have been the obvious origin; it's great that it seems to have gained such a wide acceptance, not just among the said immigrants.

Any other dishes from this group that are widely popular?

IMHO felafel (combined in the way you describe) is one of the foods of the gods....

Re drip: there's the straddle-legged approach, lean forward at the waist, mouth wide open with the plate underneath chin ... There should be an icon for that...

thanks again. - M

[Pam R]

Updates:

The jarred version, according to one customer, can be used 'as you would use mustard' -- further questioning and what he meant was 'on anything'. He likes to use it on falafel, sandwiches, etc.

The powdered version -- he likes to use it for chicken. Liberally sprinkle on chicken, let it sit for a while and grill. Also can be used for 'kabob' or sausages if you're making your own.