Pork Vindaloo

One of my favourite malayali dishes is pork vindaloo-soft, falling apart pork cooked in lots of garlic and pickling spices- What's not to love? Yes, it may have come from Goa, even originally ( in a completely different form I'm sure) from the Portuguese, but we Syrian Christians claim it as our own. 

The best vindaloo that I have ever is made by Roseduthi, who learnt it from my Great grandmother and she has been making it for almost every Christmas or Easter get-together at my grandmother's house. It has a fiery red gravy and big slices of garlic that has been cooked until buttery soft. However when I asked my mom for the recipe, the one she sent me was this one, which when I made it (probably because as usual I took a lot of liberties with it), turned out to be very unlike Roseduthi's. So now I have to resume my hunt for that elusive recipe, but in the meanwhile will continue to make my mom's version which is delicious in it's own way- though to me it's more of a delicious spicy pork curry and not the vindaloo that I remember from my childhood. 

I am sending this yummy pork curry to the wonderful Ria who is hosting this month's Kerala Kitchen! 

Pork Vindaloo

Recipe source: This is my mom's recipe, although I made a few changes which I have mentioned in brackets.

• Pork 1 kg ( 2 pounds stewing pork that has been cut into cubes)- A little pork fat adds a lot to the taste since it melts while cooking and adds great flavor to the gravy so make sure to use pork with a little fat and not lean pork.

Rub the pork with the following and leave while you get the other ingredients ready ( for about 15 mins):

• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp salt

Meanwhile slice and keep ready the following:

• Onion-400 gms ( I used 2 medium onions sliced thin)
• Green chilli- 4 ( Of course I used 15-but then the green chillies we get here are not nearly as singingly hot as the ones in Kerala) 
• Ginger-100 gms ( I used a piece about half as big as my thumb)
• Ginger paste-3 tbsp 
• Garlic sliced-50 gms 
• Garlic paste-50 gms 

Masala for the Vindaloo ( These are pickling spices which make the vindaloo taste even better after a few days):

• Mustard powder-1 tsp 
• Cumin/Jeera powder-1/2 tsp 
• Chilli powder-2 tbsp 
• Cloves/grampu-10 ,
• Cardamom-10,
• Bay leaves/Patta 3-4

Powder the above in a spice grinder with just enough vinegar to make a paste

( I was in a hurry so I didn't powder my own spices and just used 2 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1 tbsp chilli powder instead- deviating from the original recipe)

• Curry leaves-  about 6-7

Method:

• Mix salt, turmeric powder, chilli powder on the pork and pressure cook. When the whistle blows, cook for a further 10 mins without opening and then turn off the heat. Meanwhile prep the onions and green chillies.
• Splutter the masala in oil and add sliced onion, green chillies and garlic as well as the ginger and garlic paste
• Saute till the oil separates and spices are fragrant and well cooked and onions are starting to caramelize.
• Add the cooked meat and curry leaves, mix to combine with the masalas and cook on a slow fire till the gravy thickens. You can reduce it further to make more of a dry dish if you prefer.

This is usually served with rice, appams or pathiris though I'll happily mop it up with breads and rotis or even tortilla and pita! It even tastes better on the second or third day, while the spices mellow a little in the fridge- if you are able to save some leftovers!