Pork Vindalho II

Here I am, presenting one more pork recipe! We are a pork-loving family and I keep trying out different pork recipes making my own changes along the way. Well, this yummy pork dish has gone a fair bit between Portugal and Goa. According to Raul Dias, Portuguese explorers carried with them on sea voyages a simple dish of pork marinated with wine and garlic called the carne de vinha d’alhos: The red wine helped preserve the meat and the pungent garlic masked odours, if any. They would then stew this over low heat and eat it with dried loaves of chewy bread. After the conquest of Goa, this well-travelling dish underwent a sea change, with palm vinegar standing in for the wine and spices like Kashmiri chillies and toasted cumin seeds adding a new dimension. The Portuguese version today is a lot less spicy and a wee bit less vinegar-y than its Goan sibling.

Here, I have taken a basic vindaloo recipe and have made some changes to turn out an equally delicious version of Pork Vindaloo that I have called 'Pork Vindaloo II' 

Preparation time - 10 minutes

Cooking time - 30 -40 minutes


Ingredients:

Pork - 1/2 kg, cut into small pieces

Shallots - 8,  chopped

Tomato - 1, small,  chopped

Salt - to taste

Red wine vinegar - 1 1/2 tbsp

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Oil - 2 tbsp

For the masala :

Kashmjri dry red chillies - 6

Green chillies - 1

Cloves - 3

Cinnamon - 1'' piece

Tamarind - small pearl size

Turmeric - 1/2 tsp

Garlic - 7 cloves

Ginger - 3/4'' piece

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Black peppercorns - 8

Method :

1. Wash clean and cut the pork into small pieces. Marinate the pork with salt and a little turmeric powder for sometime.

2. For the masala, grind dry chillies, green chillies , ginger, garlic, cloves, cinnamon, turmeric, shallot onions, tamarind, cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Grind to a fine paste using a little water.

3. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, put in the curry leaves. When it stops spluttering, add the chopped shallots and saute till they turn trasnlucent.

4. Add the masala and saute till the masala leaves the sides. Now add the chopped tomato and saute till it becomes soft.

5. Add the marinated pork and saute for 3- 4 minutes. then add the red wine vinegar and mix well.

5. Add 3/4 cup of water and mix well. Cover and cook for 5 whistles on high heat and simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

6. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve with appams, sannas or Indian breads.