Vindaloo

Ingredients

Meat

• 1.2 kgpork shoulder, with fat, in large cubes

Spice paste

• 12Kashmiri dried chillies
• 6dried bird’s eye chillies, or fewer
• 1whole head of garlic, peeled
• 5cm ginger
• 2 teaspoonscumin seeds
• 1 teaspoonblack peppercorns
• 1 teaspoonblack mustard seeds
• 6cloves
• 5cm cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoonturmeric
• 200 mlpalm vinegar or cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoonsalt
• 1 tablespoonjaggery or palm sugar

To cook

• 3 tablespoonsoil or lard
• 2onions, finely sliced
• 200 mlwater
• extra vinegar, to finish

To serve

• steamed rice
• sannas or pao bread

Directions

1. Use shoulder with a good proportion of fat. Cut it into generous cubes of about four centimetres. Malt vinegar is too harsh for this dish. Adjust their number to suit yourself. Soak them in warm vinegar for twenty minutes. Toast the cumin, peppercorns and mustard seeds in a dry pan.
2. Shake the pan for one minute until they smell fragrant. Grind them with the cloves and cinnamon. Put the soaked chillies and their vinegar in a blender. Add the ground spices, garlic, ginger and turmeric.
3. Add the salt and the jaggery to it. Blend it to a smooth thick paste. Add a little more vinegar if it will not turn. Use vinegar and not water at this stage. Put the pork into a non-metallic bowl. Pour the paste over it and turn it through. Every piece should be coated thickly.
4. Cover it and refrigerate it overnight. Twenty-four hours is better still. Heat the oil or lard in a heavy pot. Fry the sliced onions until they are deep golden. This takes fifteen minutes and should not be rushed.
5. Add the marinated pork with all of its paste. Raise the heat and fry it for ten minutes. Stir it constantly as the paste cooks. Pour in the water and bring it to a simmer. Cover the pot and lower the heat right down. Let it cook for about an hour and a quarter.
6. Stir it every fifteen minutes. The pork should be completely tender. Uncover it and reduce it further if it is watery. Taste the finished sauce carefully. It should be sour, hot, garlicky and slightly sweet.
7. Add a splash more vinegar if it tastes flat. Add more jaggery if the sourness is too sharp. Adjust the salt right at the end. Cool it and refrigerate it overnight if you can. It keeps for four or five days refrigerated.

Technique

• Vindaloo is a Goan Catholic dish, and pork is central to it in a way that reflects that community’s history.
• The Portuguese ruled Goa from 1510 until 1961, and the local cuisine carries many traces of that period.

Substitutions

• Cider vinegar is the best widely available substitute for palm vinegar.
• Lamb, beef or chicken can be used, though pork is the traditional and the best suited meat.

Variations

• Some Goan households add a few boiled potatoes, despite the name having nothing to do with them.
• A prawn version is made along the coast.
• Sorpotel is the related Goan dish made with pork offal and blood.

History

From Portuguese carne de vinha d’alhos, meat in wine and garlic; Goan cooks swapped wine for palm vinegar and added chilli and spice.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vindaloo?

Vindaloo is a main from India: goan pork stewed in vinegar, garlic and Kashmiri chilli, sharp and dark red. From Portuguese carne de vinha d’alhos, meat in wine and garlic; Goan cooks swapped wine for palm vinegar and added chilli and spice.

How long does Vindaloo take to make?

Vindaloo takes 30 minutes plus overnight marinating of preparation and 1 hour 30 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Vindaloo?

Yes, within limits. Cider vinegar is the best widely available substitute for palm vinegar. Lamb, beef or chicken can be used, though pork is the traditional and the best suited meat.