Creative ways to pair dates with sour, salty and spicy ingredients
Summary
From savoury pairings to unexpected flavor combinations, a journey through the ingredient's surprising versatility
Earlier this month, I attended a Moroccan dinner at Lapis, The Oberoi Bengaluru, put together by guest chefs Jawad Ourmerri and Rafia Yassine from The Oberoi, Marakkech. The dinner started with bowls of vibrant salads and fresh bread and moved on to appetisers, soup, mains and desserts. Among all the deliciousness, the flavour that stayed with me was the date that accompanied the lentil soup. It came on a tiny plate with a lemon wedge, a grilled slice of a mini baguette. It was not a simple date, but one fragrant with rose water, and something about the delicate floral notes made it a completely new experience. As someone who does not like the cloying, unidimensional sweetness of dates, the addition of rose water made it taste exotic.
It got me thinking how one falls in love with an ingredient that they don’t like too much. The answer is to pair it with another ingredient which results in a flavour that is delectable, intriguing, novel or all or these.
When it comes to dates, I recommend choosing a partner ingredient that is either salty, bitter, spicy, umami or sour. Think of ingredients such as salted butter, soy sauce, dark chocolate, tahini, chilli flakes, black pepper, orange or lime. Herbal or floral notes, that I discovered at the Moroccan dinner, provide a delicate backdrop of aroma to dates.
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Salty: I remember seeing this utterly delicious video on Instagram where soaked dates were ground to a paste and mixed into soft salted butter, slathered on a thick toasted slice of sourdough. If you are a sweet-salty fan, this would be food nirvana. Whisk in some date puree with soy sauce, vinegar, sesame seeds, black pepper (or chilli flakes) and a touch of toasted sesame oil for the perfect Asian dressing, where date steps in the place of honey.
Bitter: Melt some bitter dark chocolate and dip deseeded dates in the melted chocolate. Place on a baking paper. Sprinkle coarse salt and freeze or refrigerate until the chocolate is set. Eat one for the perfect after dinner-dessert. You can also spoon a bit of tahini or sesame seed paste inside the cavity of the date and then proceed to dip it in melted chocolate for another layer of mildly bitter flavours.
Spicy: I can’t think of a better way to put together dates and chillies than in a hot (and sweet) sauce. I’ve written about a lacto-fermented green tomato hot sauce in an earlier column. Keep a mix of rehydrated dried chillies (Byadagi, Guntur, Kashmiri) to lacto-ferment for three weeks and then blend with dates and tamarind puree. You can make the flavours more complex by fermenting the dates separately for two days by immersing them in kombucha or whey. This also reduces the sugar level in the dates. The fermented dates can be drained and pureed along with some tamarind paste and the fermented red chillies.
Sour: Combining chopped dates in an orange and greens salad or making a citrusy dressing with lemon juice and olive oil in a salad with dates, walnuts, kale and roasted vegetables will showcase the contrasts beautifully.
My favourite way to use dates in Indian cooking is in the Gujarati dal which brings together ingredients like tur dal, peanuts, yam, ginger, green chillies, kokum (or tamarind), and dried dates (kharek), all in one pot of simmering comforting goodness, something to pacify every tastebud.
I hope this inspires you not just to try newer combinations with dates, but also with other ingredients, to elevate each dish with exciting new taste combinations.
Date Peanut Butter
Makes half cup
Ingredients
12 large dates, deseeded
1 cup roasted peanuts
2 tsp orange zest
Half tsp red chilli flakes
Half tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
Method
Soak the dates in hot water for 1 hour.
Take the roasted peanuts in a mixer jar and blend until it reaches a butter stage.
Drain the dates well and add to the mixer jar, blending it along with the peanut paste.
Add the orange zest, chilli flakes, salt and olive oil. Pulse until everything is combined. Finally stir in the toasted sesame seeds. Transfer to a clean dry glass jar with a lid. Refrigerate and use within a week.
Goes well on toast or as a part of cheese platters. Makes a wonderful handmade gift too.
Date Walnut Truffles
Makes 12
Ingredients
One third cup walnut pieces
12-14 seedless dates
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons rolled oats (finely powdered)
2 pinches of coarse salt
Half teaspoon vanilla extract
Method
Soak the dates in hot water for 1 hour. Drain and keep aside.
In a mixer jar, grind the walnuts to a powder and remove to a bowl. Add the dates and blend to a paste. Scrape this out in the bowl with the walnut powder.
Add up to 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the bowl and using a silicon spatula, bring the contents together until the mixture is not overly wet to touch. Mix in the vanilla extract. Keep the uncovered bowl in the freezer for 20 minutes or so. It will be less sticky to handle now.
Divide this into 12 portions. Sprinkle some cocoa powder on a plate. Roll each portion into a ball between palms and roll it over the cocoa to coat all over.
Once all 12 truffles are ready, keep on a plate in a single layer and freeze for 15 minutes.
Remove into an airtight container and store in the freezer. This will stay for four-five days.
Double Tested is a fortnightly column on vegetarian cooking, highlighting a single ingredient prepared two ways. Nandita Iyer’s latest book is The Great Indian Thali—Seasonal Vegetarian Wholesomeness (Roli Books). She posts @saffrontrail on X and Instagram.
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