What to use instead of asam gelugur
Quick answer
The closest option is Tamarind, rated acceptable. Sours the dish with a different fruit. The handbook account of Garcinia records that its sour fruits are sometimes used as substitutes for tamarind, so the two are known to stand in for each other; nothing read compares them in a dish, and the Malaysian survey read for the profile shows cooks using each in different dishes.
It will not do for: A dish named for asam gelugur, where a reader expects that fruit and not tamarind..
All recorded options
Ranked by suitability. Ratios are given only where they are defensible, and always with their basis — by weight or by volume — because spice densities differ.
Tamarind
AcceptableSours the dish with a different fruit. The handbook account of Garcinia records that its sour fruits are sometimes used as substitutes for tamarind, so the two are known to stand in for each other; nothing read compares them in a dish, and the Malaysian survey read for the profile shows cooks using each in different dishes.
| Flavour | Aroma | Colour | Heat |
|---|---|---|---|
| partial | different | different | n/a |
Works for
- A sour fish dish when the dried slices cannot be found
Does not work for
- A dish named for asam gelugur, where a reader expects that fruit and not tamarind.
No ratio is given: no source read states one, and the two differ in form, one a dried slice left in the pot and the other a pulp.