Vindaloo curry dishes have become quite popular. This wonderfully delicious dish is from the coastal region of Goa and is influenced by the original Portuguese version known as Vinha d'Alho (from "vinha" meaning wine vinegar and "alho" meaning garlic). The Goans have made it their own by adding lots of spices and chilies making vindaloo curries famous for their spicy and bold flavors. This versatile curry can be made with any meat, poultry, seafood or vegetables of your choosing. There are lots of variations to this dish, but I have provided my favorite version. I have also included a recipe for my home made Vindaloo curry paste, but this is easily available at any Indian grocery store.


TRADITIONAL VINDALOO CURRY PASTE:

Ingredients

2 oz dried red Indian chilies (or any other dried red chili is fine)
1 medium onion, diced
2 tbsp oil (vegetable or canola)
1 inch fresh piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
4 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi)
1 tsp whole cloves
1 tsp cardamom seeds
2 inch piece of cinnamon stick (broken into smaller pieces)
a walnut-sized piece of tamarind pulp (no seeds) or 1 heaping tbsp tamarind concentrate
1/2 tsp light soft brown sugar
2 tbsp white wine vinegar

METHOD:

Reconstitute the dried chilies by covering them with hot water and soaking them overnight. Drain the chillies well (reserve the liquid) and chop them into large pieces, keep aside until needed.

In a large saute pan on high heat, add the oil and the onion. Stir fry for 5 minutes until slightly caramelized and then add the ginger and garlic. Stir fry for an additional 5-8 minutes until golden brown in color. Remove from the heat and allow to cool until needed.

In a medium saute pan with no oil on medium low heat, add the cumin and coriander seeds. Stir and add the black peppercorns, black mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Keep stirring for a few more seconds and add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon stick pieces. Keep stirring for a few seconds and when fragrant, remove all the spices immediately from the hot pan and set aside to cool. When the toasted spices have cooled, using a clean dry spice grinder, grind into a fine powder and keep aside.

In a blender or food processor, add the now cooled onion/ginger/ garlic mixture along with the reconstituted chilies, tamarind, vinegar and sugar. Puree until well combined and add the ground spice mixture, blend to a smooth paste. If the mixture is a bit thick, add a little of the reconstituted chili water as needed. This will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator.

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SPICY EGG VINDALOO

Ingredients:

6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in half lengthwise
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
½ inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely minced
2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
one 8 oz can of tomato paste
1 tsp red chili powder (to taste)
2 tsp turmeric
2 large tablespoons vindaloo curry paste
salt & pepper to taste
2-3 tbsp of oil (vegetable or canola)
freshly chopped cilantro leaves for garnish

METHOD:

Heat the oil in large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onions, stirring frequently, and then add the ginger and garlic. Stir fry until the mixture is a rich, dark brown color. This may take up to 10-12 minutes or longer. Then add the red chili powder, turmeric, salt, pepper and tomato paste. Stir for a few minutes until well combined and add the vindaloo curry paste. Add a few tablespoons of water if necessary.

Bring the curry to a gentle boil, add the egg halves, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 5-6 minutes and garnish with freshly chopped cilantro leaves. Serve with fragrant Basmati rice and hot chapatis.


VARIATIONS:

Instead of adding water, try adding a little coconut milk (½ cup) for another layer of depth and flavor.