Good ideas for Tonka Beans [closed]

My girlfriend loves the taste of Tonka beans, so I got her some for Christmas. We are however struggling to find that many recipes involving them, and the ones we have found seem to vary from saying use very little (i.e. 1 tsp of grated) to a whole bean.

Does anyone have any experience with Tonka beans and pointers for where some good recipes may be, or which foods they work best in?

Thanks

baking beans

Best Answer

Here is some great background to the Tonka bean . Try a few shavings in ice cream.

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How do you cook with tonka beans?

Tonka bean is most often used to infuse liquids though, like milks, creams and custards. The shavings are added to the liquid, and stirred on a medium-heat. Cooks should be careful not to boil furiously though, as this will alter the tonka flavour. Whole tonka beans can also be used to infuse spirits or sugar syrups.

How toxic are tonka beans?

At least 30 entire tonka beans (250 servings, or 1 gram of coumarin total) would need to be eaten to approach levels reported as toxic\u2014about the same volume at which nutmeg and other everyday spices are toxic.

Are tonka beans legal in UK?

Both tonka and coumarin were outlawed. Fast-forward to 2017 and they've never quite disappeared.

Is tonka bean the same as vanilla?

If one were to compare it to vanilla, the smell of tonka bean is not as overpoweringly sugary. Rather than being creamy-sweet, tonka bean has a more neutral sweet tone with nuanced notes of cinnamon spice, almond, cherry, and sweet hay.

How to use Tonka Beans

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Images: cottonbro, Engin Akyurt, Miguel Á. Padriñán, Ella Olsson