It's not easy to get the perfect sweet and sour flavor so you have to taste the sauce a few times in order to get that perfect balance. This dish is supposed to be both sweet and sour, and a little salty. When I made this in Penang, I used less sugar because the sugar in Malaysia is a lot sweeter/stronger than in the US. So, please let your taste bud guide you during the cooking process. If it's not sour enough, extract more juice from the tamarind pulp. If it's too sour, add more sugar and some water. My mother also makes masak branda with salted fish . I will have to share the recipe one day.