Goan food is a celebration of hot, tangy and spicy flavors.
And Vindaloo is a quintessential Goan specialty and especially popular during the holidays. In fact, Christmas would hardly be Christmas if it were not for the highly anticipated Sorpotel and Vindaloo in Goan homes. It was a much sort after meal for all of us who spent Christmas at the homes of our Goan Catholic school friends, growing up.
Here are 3 things you probably did not know about Vindaloo but ought to if you're going to serve it at your next Book club/dinner party or else risk end up being a proper Vindaloo-bumpkin!
1. Just because the term Vindaloo consists of the word 'aloo' which in Hindi means potatoes, there is no room for potatoes in a traditional Vindaloo.
2. The term vindaloo derives from the Portughese dish "Carne de Vinha d' Alhos", which is a dish consisting of meat, usually pork, with wine and garlic. The dish evolved into the Vindaloo when the Goans made it their own by adding plenty of spices and the subsitituting wine for their signature ingredient - Vinegar.
3. Why the Portughese influence in Goa? Because the Portughese landed on Goa's shores in the early 16th century as merchants, and conquered it soon thereafter. The Portuguese overseas territory of Portuguese India existed for about 450 years, until it was annexed by India in 1961.
It's best to use a cheap cut of meat like pork-butt for such a recipe and it is essential to allow the meat to marinate overnight to season and infuse with flavor. I also use a slow cooker to cook the meat instead of cooking the Vindaloo stove top as it is not only convenient on a busy weeknight but also renders an incredibly flavorful and moist result.
Can Vindaloo be made with prawns or chicken? Sure, but forgo the overnight marination if using seafood and it is best to use boneless, skinless, chicken thighs if you end up using chicken. Also, seafood will cook very quickly right on the stove top with no slow-cooking required.
As with all Goan food, chilli rules so though the recipe is authentic it is no means a traditional, fiery hot rendition and I have subsituted the usually called for 15 red chillies for a meek 2! But if you can happily ingest the called for 15, I say go for it!
The cardinal spices of Goan cooking -
2-15 Kashmiri Chillies, 1 tsp coriander seeds, 2 tsp Cumin seeds, 1-1/2 tsp turmeric, 2" cinnamon sticks, 6 black peppercorns & 6 cloves.
Grind these dry in a clean coffee grinder & set aside.
Also required are pork butt, large yellow or pungent red onions, garlic cloves, fresh ginger root, vegetable oil, salt and vinegar.
Whole spices required for tempering and flavoring the oil are - whole cardamom pods, cinnamon stick & whole cloves.
Prepare the ingredients -
Pork - Cut away all excess fat, membranes and skin. Cut the pork into 1-1/2" cubes. Wash under tap water and dry the meat with kitchen paper towels. Set aside in a bowl with 1/2 tbs salt. Rub the salt all over the meat thoroughly with clean hands.
Onions - Peel, discards ends and skin and thinly slice
Garlic - Peel cloves and set aside
Ginger root - Wash, cut into chunks and set aside.
In a large saute pan, heat 1/2 cup oil on medium high heat till hot.
Add onions and saute for 20-25 minutes till soft and a light golden brown. Do not allow the onions to turn black. With a slotted spoon remove the onions to a food processor and set aside the pan with reserved oil for use the next day.
To the food processor with the onions, add the ground spices, the ginger, garlic and 1/2 cup vinegar. Grind to a fine paste the consistency of pesto/Thai curry paste. If more liquid is needed add 1 tbs vinegar at a time but do not add any water.
Rub the ground paste all over the meat with clean hands and transfer into a Ziploc bag into the refrigerator to marinate overnight.
The next day -
Heat the same pan with the reserved oil over medium-high heat. Add the whole cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and cloves. As soon as they crackle, add the marinated meat and saute for 10-15 minutes until the meat is no longer pink.
Add the sugar. Taste and adjust the seasonings. The gravy should be slightly tangy.
For crock-pot : Add 1/2 cup water. Remove the meat and liquid form the pan to a Crockpot or slow cooker and cook for 6-8 hours.
For stove-top: Add 1-1/2 cups water. Cook on medium-low covering the for about 30-40 minutes, stirring off & on to prevent stickling to the bottom of the pan and till the meat is extremely tender soft. Add additonal ¼ cup of water if your want a thinner gravy.
Even better the next day with steamed rice. North Indian breads such as Naan will not do! Goan foods are traditionally eaten with rice. Period.
Intensely flavored and aromatic, this Vindaloo as Mr. Hubby and the dinner guests exclaimed was one of the finest they'd ever eaten.
And just to punctuate this point, all that was left at night's end were empty pots. So you'd better believe it! This Vindaloo though simple with just a handful of spices may be short on ingredient list but full on flavor.
I served the Vindaloo with spicy fish cutlets and rice pilaf on this fancier occasion but steamed white rice would have worked just as well. Give it a go and see for yourself!
Recipe for
It's Vindaloo! - Slow Cooked, Spiced Pork from the shores of Goa, India
Preparation time - 30 minutes
Marinating time - Overnight
Cooking time - Slow cooker - 6-8 hours
Serves 4-6
Shopping list
3-4 lbs pork butt or pork shoulder country style boneless ribs
2 medium or 1 large onion
6 garlic cloves
1-1/2" fresh ginger root
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup + 2 tbs vinegar (malted if available)
1/2 tbs + 1 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
Ground spices -
2-15 Kashmiri Chillies
1 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp Cumin seeds
1-1/2 tsp turmeric
2" cinnamon sticks
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
6 cloves
Whole Spices -
4 cardamom pods
6 whole cloves
1-1/2" cinnamon stick
Preparation-
Ground spices - Grind these dry in a clean coffee grinder & set aside.
Pork - Cut away all excess fat, membranes and skin. Cut the pork into 1-1/2" cubes. Wash under tap water and dry the meat with kitchen paper towels. Set aside in a bowl with 1/2 tbs salt. Rub the salt all over the meat thoroughly with clean hands.
Onions - Peel, discards ends and skin and thinly slice
Garlic - Peel cloves and set aside
Ginger root - Wash, cut into chunks and set aside.
Method:
In a large saute pan, heat 1/2 cup oil on medium high heat till hot.
Add onions, garlic and ginger and saute for 15-20 minutes till soft and a light golden brown. Do not allow the onions to turn black. With a slotted spoon remove the onions to a food processor and set aside the pan with reserved oil for use the next day.
To the food processor with the onions, add the ground spices and 1/2 cup vinegar. Grind to a fine paste the consistency of pesto/Thai curry paste. If more liquid is needed add 1 tbs vinegar at a time but do not add any water.
Rub the ground paste all over the meat with clean hands and transfer into a Ziploc bag into the refrigerator to marinate overnight.
The next day -
Heat the same pan with the reserved oil over medium-high heat. Add the whole cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and cloves. As soon as they crackle, add the marinated meat and saute for 10-15 minutes until the meat is no longer pink.
Add 1/4 cup water, 2 tbs vinegar and 1 tsp salt. Taste and adjust the seasonings in the spice paste and add more salt and vinegar if needed. The spice paste should be slightly tangy.
Remove the meat and liquid form the pan to a crockpot or slow cooker and cook for 6-8 hours.
Serve the same day or next day with steamed rice. North Indian breads such as Naan will not do! Goan foods are traditionally eaten with rice. Period.
Enjoy!
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