Goan pork vindaloo is an intriguingly fragrant curry, warmed by cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves. Hot, sweet, and sour flavors marry a deliciously memorable sauce with rich and tender pork. Truly a masala of your dreams!
See NOTES for a Goan garam masala substitute: Toast all the whole spices in the spice mix. In a dry skillet over medium-high heat toast the spices until fragrant, stirring constantly so they toast evenly. Look for them to darken slightly; about 2 minutes. Allow them to cool for 5 minutes.
Using a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle, grind the spices. Dump the ground spices (or two tablespoons of Goan garam masala)into a small bowl and stir in the turmeric and salt. Add the vinegar. If you didn’t use whole chilies, add the ground chilies now.
Cut your meat of choice into the size of cubes that you prefer. Rub the marinade into your meat and allow it to rest at room temperature while you make the sauce or pop it in the fridge for three to four hours. Please see the Notes 3 and 4 below.
SAUCE (Masala)
Heat the oil in a wide, heavy bottomed and lidded pan over a medium-high flame, and sauté the mustard and cumin seeds until they sizzle and pop; about 1 to 2 minutes.
Turn the heat to medium and add the onions and salt. Cook until the onions are soft and golden on the edges. Stir frequently, adding a splash of water if needed to keep the onions from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Don’t hurry this phase because you are building flavor. This step can take anywhere from 10 to 16 minutes.
Add the garlic and ginger paste and the green chilies to the onions. Cook stirring frequently for another 2 minutes, or until the garlic smells cooked.
Add the puréed tomatoes and curry leaves (if using), and cook stirring frequently until you have a thick paste and the tomatoes are a shade darker; about 8 to 10 minutes. If using crushed or fresh tomatoes, it will take 3 to 4 minutes longer.
Add the pork or chicken and marinade to the pan and turn the heat up to medium-high. Stir well and add sugar and tamarind. Bring to a simmer, and cover tightly.
STOVETOP
Turn the heat to low and cook on the stovetop for an hour.
Check for liquid levels at least twice during the cooking time, and if it is dry (the meat should be almost covered), add a 1/4 cup of water or more as needed. If you are cooking skinless boneless chicken, this step may only take 15 minutes or so until the meat is tender. Bone-in thighs will take roughly 45 to 60 minutes depending on their size.
For the pork: After an hour with the lid on, uncover and cook for another 30 minutes, or until the meat is very tender and the sauce has thickened. For the chicken: Remove the lid and cook for another 5 minutes over low heat to reduce the sauce and mellow out the flavors.
OVEN
After cooking the sauce through Step 5, place the vindaloo in a preheated oven at 325F° (160°C), for an hour. Check for liquid levels as described above and the cook time and instructions are the same as the stovetop method.
SLOW COOKER
After cooking the sauce through Step 5, place the vindaloo in a slow cooker. For the pork: Cook on High for 4 to 6 hours, or Low for 8 to 10 hours until the pork is tender.For the chicken: If using skinless boneless chicken leave the chicken thighs whole. Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours, or until the chicken thigh registers 175°F (80°C). If you used skinless boneless chicken thighs, remove them from the slow cooker and cut into 1-inch pieces and stir them back into the sauce. Skip this step if using bone-in thighs.
If the sauce is not as thick as you want it you can: #1 remove the lid and cook on High for 20 to 30 minutes. Or, #2 remove the meat from the sauce and cook the sauce on the stove uncovered on medium-high heat until it is as thick as you want it.
FINISHING
Allow the vindaloo to stand uncovered off the heat for 10 minutes. Taste for the acid, heat, salt, and sweetness. Garnish with coarsely chopped cilantro and serve over rice.
Notes
Spice substitute: Use 2 tablespoons of Goan garam masala instead of the marinade spices.
Kashmiri chilies are not particularly hot and are used to add flavor and color to the dish. If you wish to have a hotter dish, you can use dried guajillo peppers, or for even more heat, chile de arbol. I suggest that you start with a modest hit of chilies, and you can always add cayenne or hot sauce at the end. If you aren’t near an Indian grocery, Thai green chilies are the best fresh chili substitution or one serrano for every 2 smaller chilies.
Pork: Any cut of pork can be used for Goan pork vindaloo. If using pork shoulder, cut following the muscle of the meat, and remove most of the silver skin and fat as you go. My preference is to have the meat in large chunks, roughly 2-inches by 2-inches, so that you can taste the meat as well as the sauce. Traditionally, the meat is cut into small 1/4-inch cubes. The size you cut your meat will affect how long it will take to cook.
If using chicken legs/thighs on the bone reduce the marinating time to 2 hours, or one hour if using boneless skinless thighs. And your cook time will be much shorter than if using pork. Make vindaloo with chicken breast at your peril; it will probably be dry. NOTE: If cooking skinless boneless chicken thighs in the slow cooker, keep the thighs whole until after they are cooked. They will stay juicier.
Fresh green chilies: Serranos or Thai chilies are the best sub, but use what you have. If you want some chili flavor but not the heat, keep the chili whole and make a slit on opposite sides of the chili lengthwise.
I prefer to braise pork in the oven because the heat is more evenly distributed, but cooking on the stovetop on low heat works well too.
Vindaloo is tasty the day it is made, but if you have the time, it is even better the next day or even the next!