Pork Vindaloo

The term Vindaloo is derived from the Portuguese dish "Carne de Vinha d' Alhos", a dish of meat, cooked with wine and garlic.The traditional Portuguese dish was made with pork preserved in red wine or red wine vinegar, chili pepper, and stewed with garlic.

The dish then evolved into the Vindaloo curry dish very popular in Goa today.In olden days it was used as a means to preserve the meat and the traditional vindaloo can be stored at room temperature for several days. Spices are soaked in Vinegar and ground to a paste , the meat is then cooked with plenty of ginger and garlic and the spice mixture for several hours. Traditionally a bit of jaggery is added to cut the sourness.

Modern Restaurants often serve this dish with chicken or lamb sometimes mixed with potatoes.Traditional vindaloos do not include potatoes, maybe there was a confusion here arising because the word "aloo" means "potato" in Hindi.


Ingredients:

1. Pork - 2.5 lbs I used the picnic shoulder cut , any cut with some attached fat is preferable for this dish( Cut into big chunks -2 inch cubes)
   
2. Vinegar - 1/2 cup (use 1/4'th cup first and add as needed)
   
3. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
4. fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
5. cloves - 5
6. whole pepper corns - 1/2 tsp
7. Cardamom - 6
8. cinnamon - 1/2 inch piece
9. Onion - 1 medium sliced Thin
10. Kashmiri chilly powder - 3 tbsp(if using regular spicy kind use less)
11. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
12. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
13. Ginger - 1 inch piece
14. Garlic - 1 whole pod peeled
15. Sugar - 2 tsp( I don't use sugar)
16. Oil - 2 tbsp
17. Salt - to taste
    

Method:
Soak the whole spices and mustard seeds in 1/4th cup vinegar overnight or for couple of hours and grind it into a smooth paste with the chilly,turmeric and coriander powder and a little water .(Mustard seeds,fennel seeds ,cloves ,whole pepper corns ,Cardamom and cinnamon).
Grind the ginger and garlic together adding a bit of water if necessary into a paste and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add the sliced onion and saute until it is slightly brown.
Add in the ginger garlic paste and saute until the raw smell is gone.
Add in the spice paste with salt and saute for 3 minutes.
Add in the Pork and salt and stir well and cover and cook for 30 minutes.
There is no need to add water the meat will have enough water in it , after 30 minutes check the gravy for salt and vinegar(add sugar now if you prefer) . Add more as required to taste.
Cover and cook again on low flame for a total of 1.5 hours or until the meat is tender and the gravy is thick.