The Tonka Bean
A little goes a long way!
One of my favorite flavors in France is toxic in the US? Let’s get into it.
This week alone, I’ve used it in a yogurt cake (yum), apricot tonka jam (double yum and recipe here), a tarte aux abricots, a custard, in hot chocolate and let’s just say the week isn’t over yet…
While I wrote about it here in last year’s ‘12 Days of Flavor’ advent calendar, I thought it best to give that article a little refresh and *pizzazz* since there are so many new people here!
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What Is a Tonka Bean?
Simply put, the Tonka bean is the dried seed of a legume. This legume grows on a giant Brazilian tree in the pea family called Dipteryx odorata, or Kumaru and is primarily found in South America. Its harvest accounts for the wellbeing of many families in the amazon as it is an important source of income in that region.
What Does It Taste Like?
Similarly to woodruff, it has a sweetness to it that resembles grassy, hay-like, fresh vanilla. However, tonka beans also give off a slightly warming and spicy aftertaste of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. It smells and tastes of cozy molasses, toasted almonds, honey, and vanilla with a hint of cherry leaves? Almost like an amaretto? With just one grate of Tonka, you can flavor an entire dish.
So Why Is It Illegal in the US?
In the US, there is a great fear of coumarin as it can cause liver damage. Coumarin is especially associated with Tonka beans because it was actually discovered in them 1820. The word coumarin even comes from the French word, coumarou, or Tonka bean.
The bean has an unfortunate toxic reputation as it would take a minimum of 30 whole beans to make up the amount of coumarin deemed toxic… No one, literally no one, is eating or using that amount to spice up a dish. Its smell is so fragrant that you don’t even need to eat a whole pod. So although Tonka beans contain coumarin, chefs only use small shavings of the bean as a ittle goes a LONG way! One single dried bean can supply flavor to dozens of dishes, jams, jellies and more.
Large amounts of cassia cinnamon, nutmeg, sweet clover and certain strawberries can also reach equal levels of coumarin and be toxic. In 2013, coumarin levels were tested in Danish cinnamon rolls, kanelsnegle, which nearly resulted in an overall ban due to the high amounts of coumarin found! Find my Copenhagen city guide here
Other Uses:
Traditionally, one would slightly grate the Tonka bean into beauty products (lotion, vaseline, hair oil ets) and use as a perfume. So although use of coumarin in food been illegal since 1954, it is still used heavily in cosmetic (Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle) and tobacco (e-cigarettes) products.
Even though the tonka bean is technically illegal, you can still find some in the US… (but you didn’t hear it from me) All jokes aside, many high-end restaurants in the US use the bean on their menu so it isn’t impossible to taste it even if you happen to be located on that side of the world.
Coumadin (not coumarin) is a blood thinning drug made from changing coumarin’s chemical structure. This drug was discovered due to cows getting sick from overdosing on sweet clover… Again, large amount of certain foods can have high, and thus toxic, levels of coumarin!
How to use it?
I highly recommend playing around with this bean (shavings only please). It’s delicious in simple cakes, like madeleines or yogurt cake, as well as in creamier desserts such as creme brûlée, flan, entremets and more.
Apricot and tonka is a combo made in heaven, it’s really one of my favorite jams ever. Strawberry and tonka jam is more common but also up there as well. Next up on my jam list is a Coconut tonka using coconut flesh and water… if you missed it you can find my coconut jam recipe here!
I’VE GOT BIG NEWS COMING SOON - CAN YOU GUESS WHAT IT IS IN THE COMMENTS??
Love kumaru; the flavour it imparts is quite special.
It's crazy how we can have cinnamon and nutmeg but not tonka beans. I really need to find some of these things I love your description of them. Great read as always!