Goan Pork Vindalho

Historically Goa has a strong Portuguese influence and this dish typifies the resourcefulness of the indian people, taking foreign ingredients and making it into something unique and wonderfully Indian. Vindalho is derived from two Portuguese words, vin (wine) and alho (garlic), the wine bit meaning the wine vinegar introduced by the Portuguese invaders. Don’t get me wrong, this is a spicy dish, but it’s not as hot as you might expect and the vinegar gives a refined sourness rarely found in mainstream curries – come on, be brave….!

Ingredients:

1 tsp black peppercorns

1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds

8 cloves

2 tsp crushed red chilli

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp hot chilli powder

½ tsp ground turmeric

8 fat cloves of garlic, crushed

thumb sized piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated

6 tbsp red wine vinegar

750g chunky cubed pork, preferably outdoor reared

1 medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped

3 tbsp oil

1 piece cinnamon bark

1 400g tin of quality chopped tomatoes

1 green pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 tsp sugar

salt to taste

Method:

Roast the peppercorns, mustard seeds, cloves, crushed red chilli and cumin seeds in a dry pan until fragrant taking care not to burn. Place the roasted spice mix in a pestle and mortar and grind to a fine powder.   Mix the paprika and turmeric into the spice mix, then add the garlic and ginger and pound to a thick paste called a ‘masala’. Add half the masala to the pork with 4 tbsp of the vinegar and rub in thoroughly. Allow the pork to marinade overnight in the fridge.

Fry the onion in the oil until golden brown. Add the pork and it’s marinade, along with the remaining masala paste and the cinnamon bark. Fry for a further 5 mins until everything is well combined. Add the tomatoes, green pepper, sugar and remaining vinegar along with 100ml of water. Cover and simmer over a low heat for 20 mins until the pork is tender. You can add a little more water if the sauce gets too thick during cooking.    

At this point you need to taste the sauce and season accordingly. The sauce should be thick and red with a hot and sour taste. You can balance the acidity to your taste by adding a little more sugar or vinegar just before serving. Get a cold Kingfisher beer at the ready....!