Tamarind & Date Sauce — DUMP

Munch or Dump rates Tamarind & Date Sauce by Natco DUMP — score 20/90.

Marketed on tamarind and dates, but added sugar and jaggery are the top two ingredients, with caramel color and sodium benzoate rounding out a sweet, processed chutney.

Why this verdict

• Added sugar plus jaggery (~23.5%) outweigh the actual tamarind and dates
• ~34g sugar per 100g — a blood-sugar spike with almost no protein or fibre
• Caramel coloring added purely for appearance
• Sodium benzoate preservative and xanthan gum stabilizer
• Corn starch as a cheap thickener bulks out the formula

Ingredients (17)

• Water (safe) — Inert; just adjusts texture.
• Sugar (12%) (concerning) — Refined sugar is the single largest non-water ingredient — pure empty calories that spike blood sugar.
• Jaggery (11.5%) (concerning) — Unrefined cane sugar — marginally less processed than white sugar but still sugar, here in near-equal amount.
• Tamarind (9%) (safe) — The actual fruit base — provides tang and some antioxidants, but it's third in line behind two sweeteners.
• Dates (9%) (safe) — Whole fruit adding natural sweetness and a little fibre, though present in modest amount.
• Cumin powder (2%) (safe) — Whole spice for flavour, neutral to mildly positive.
• Salt (moderate) — Added sodium for flavour.
• Corn starch (1.5%) (moderate) — Refined starch used purely to thicken and bulk the sauce cheaply.
• Chilli powder (0.6%) (safe) — Spice for heat, neutral.
• Ginger powder (0.4%) (safe) — Whole spice, neutral to mildly positive.
• Caramel colour (moderate) — Purely cosmetic dye to make the sauce look slow-baked. No nutrition, some types carry 4-MEI questions.
• Acetic acid (0.3%) (safe) — Acidity regulator (vinegar acid), safe.
• citric acid (safe) — Common acidulant for tartness and preservation; safe in these amounts.
• garlic paste (safe) — Flavouring, neutral.
• Ginger paste (safe) — Flavouring, neutral.
• Xanthan gum (0.2%) (moderate) — Stabilizer/thickener — a tell-tale sign of an engineered, shelf-stable formula.
• Sodium benzoate (0.07%) (moderate) — Synthetic preservative; can form benzene with vitamin C and is a common marker of processed products.