Goan pork vindaloo, traditionally called pork vindalho, grew from the Portuguese vinha d’alhos, meat prepared with wine and garlic. Goan cooks transformed it with local vinegar, dried chiles and aromatic spices, creating a dish in which acidity, heat and the richness of pork remain carefully balanced.
British curry houses later recast vindaloo as one of the hottest dishes on the menu, with the British-created phaal presented as hotter still. Traditional Goan vindaloo can certainly be fiery, but its defining character comes as much from vinegar, garlic and spices as from chile heat.
A note about the vinegar:
Goan palm vinegar is traditional, but difficult to find in the United States. Sherry vinegar provides a similarly rounded acidity and is a practical substitute.
Ingredients
3 pounds boneless Pork Shoulder, cut into 1½-inch chunks
Marinade:
¼ cup Sherry Vinegar
2 Tbsp Water
8 cloves Garlic, crushed
1½-inch piece fresh Ginger, finely grated or crushed
2 Tbsp Kashmiri Chili Powder
1½ tsp Cumin Seeds, whole
1 tsp Brown or Black Mustard Seeds, whole
½ tsp Black Peppercorns, whole
½ tsp Turmeric, ground
¼ tsp Fenugreek Seeds, whole
6 Cloves, whole
2-inch piece Cinnamon Stick, whole
2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Brown Sugar or Jaggery
½ tsp Cayenne Pepper, optional
Cooking Ingredients:
3 Tbsp neutral Cooking Oil, I like avocado oil.
1 large Red Onion, thinly sliced (traditional), or 1 large Yellow Onion
1 cup Water, as needed
5 Dried Hot Chilies, left whole if you desire a bit more heat.
Additional Sherry Vinegar, if needed
Additional Brown Sugar or Jaggery, if needed
Salt, if needed
Preparation:
To prepare the marinade, lightly toast all of your whole spices and then allow them to cool. Then grind them up and mix them with all the other marinade ingredients and pour it over the pork, mix well and allow it to marinate overnight if possible.
Remove the pork from the refrigerator approximately 30 minutes before cooking. Keep all the marinade with it.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Heat the oil in a heavy Dutch oven or deep sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring periodically, until soft and golden.
Add the pork with all its marinade. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the pork has lost its raw appearance and the spice mixture has darkened slightly. Allow the pork to make contact with the bottom of the pan, but watch carefully because the garlic and ground spices can scorch.
Add 1 cup water and scrape the bottom of the pan thoroughly. Bring everything to a gentle simmer, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan and transfer to the preheated oven.
Cook gently for 1½ to 2 hours, stirring approximately every 20 minutes. Add a little additional water if the sauce becomes too dry or begins sticking to the bottom.
Remove the lid during the final 15 to 20 minutes if the sauce needs to reduce. The finished sauce should be reduced and lightly thickened but remain loose enough to spoon over the pork and rice.
The pork is ready when it is completely tender and the rendered fat has begun to separate from the thickened sauce.
If the vinegar tastes too sharp, add brown sugar or jaggery ½ teaspoon at a time. If the finished vindaloo needs more brightness, add sherry vinegar 1 teaspoon at a time. Adjust the salt last.
Allow the vindaloo to rest for 10 minutes before serving with plain basmati rice.
Note: The title picture is after the vindaloo had fully reduced. You can tell as the oil has separated.
Goan Pork Vindaloo (Pork Vindalho)
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- To prepare the marinade, lightly toast all of your whole spices and then allow them to cool. Then grind them up and mix them with all the other marinade ingredients and pour it over the pork, mix well and allow it to marinate overnight if possible.
- Remove the pork from the refrigerator approximately 30 minutes before cooking. Keep all the marinade with it. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Heat the oil in a heavy Dutch oven or deep sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring periodically, until soft and golden.
- Add the pork with all its marinade. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the pork has lost its raw appearance and the spice mixture has darkened slightly. Allow the pork to make contact with the bottom of the pan, but watch carefully because the garlic and ground spices can scorch.
- Add 1 cup water and scrape the bottom of the pan thoroughly. Bring everything to a gentle simmer, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan and transfer to the preheated oven.
- Cook gently for 1½ to 2 hours, stirring approximately every 20 minutes. Add a little additional water if the sauce becomes too dry or begins sticking to the bottom.
- Remove the lid during the final 15 to 20 minutes if the sauce needs to reduce. The finished sauce should be reduced and lightly thickened but remain loose enough to spoon over the pork and rice.
- The pork is ready when it is completely tender and the rendered fat has begun to separate from the thickened sauce.
- If the vinegar tastes too sharp, add brown sugar or jaggery ½ teaspoon at a time. If the finished vindaloo needs more brightness, add sherry vinegar 1 teaspoon at a time. Adjust the salt last.
- Allow the vindaloo to rest for 10 minutes before serving with plain basmati rice.