All too often in restaurants, chicken vindaloo is simply reduced to the “spiciest” dish on the menu. But this dish is full of bold, balanced and complex flavors from fresh spices, herbs and the essential vinegar flavor. The red chillies give the dish just the right amount of heat and the classic fiery red color without masking the wonderful flavors underneath.
How spicy is chicken vindaloo?
As the basic curry paste at Vindaloo consists mainly of dried chilies, this dish has a particularly spicy taste. The degree of spiciness can of course be adjusted as desired.
The general rule in India and Pakistan is: the higher the degree of spiciness, the more popular a dish is. I remember how my father used to praise my mother’s food when his mouth was burning and his forehead was beaded with sweat. If that wasn’t the case, he liked to snack on hot, fresh green chilies with his food :-).
My vindaloo recipe with potatoes, however, should not burn your taste buds. That’s why I have prepared the recipe in such a way that it has a good, pleasant spiciness. Because I think the chicken vindaloo version with potatoes is great for neutralizing the spicy sauce with the potatoes.
The story behind Chicken Vindaloo
Did you know that the Portuguese brought this dish to Goa (India)? No? I didn’t know either until recently 🙂
So according to Google, the Portuguese brought a typical way of preparing pork to Goa in 1966: marinating pork in wine, garlic and spices, known in Portuguese as “carne em vinha de alhos”.
Goa was under Portuguese colonial rule until the 1960s. As a result, many were converted to Christianity and were allowed to eat pork and beef.
So this dish was brought to Goa by the Portuguese and “vindaloo” became the local pronunciation. The Goan cooks kept the pork but replaced the wine with vinegar and of course added a lot of aromatic spices to this dish.My vinddaloo version is with chicken, which is how you find vindaloo in most menus nowadays. I am very happy to share this recipe with you today.
Preparation of chicken vindaloo with potatoes
The preparation for chicken vindaloo is surprisingly simple. First, a paste is made from dried red chilies, lots of aromatic spices (coriander powder, chili powder, turmeric, garam masala) and fresh ingredients such as garlic and peppercorns. By the way, I always prepare my own garam masala, you can find the recipe here. Besides the chilies, the other important ingredient here is vinegar: Vinegar.
To make it easier for the food processor when blending, I added a little tomato puree and water. Tomato puree is not typically used in Vindaloo curry . But I still think it was a great addition here. If you don’t like it, just leave it out :-). The chicken meat is marinated with the paste and then put to one side for later. If you have enough time, I recommend preparing the marinade with the meat the night before and leaving it to marinate in the fridge.
Before the meat is fried with the spicy marinade, “whole spices” (sabut masala) such as coriander seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and cardamom pods are heated with the onions in a little ghee. The smell that spreads is simply incredibly aromatic!
I have also added pre-cooked potatoes and a tomato, which harmonize perfectly with the spicy sauce.
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If you have tried the recipe, I would be very interested in your opinion. Just leave me a comment below or let me know what you think of this recipe on Instagram. I’m always happy to receive praise, more tips and friendly criticism.
Best regards
