Chicken Vindaloo with Potatoes

Chicken Vindaloo with Potatoes : This recipe comes with a warning : Not For The Faint Hearted ! No, I’m not joking…to say that it’s spicy shall be underestimating the facts…it’s fiery !!!

The origins of the recipe are traced back to the Portuguese…yes, the same people who created the famous piri piri or peri peri hot sauce ! The word Vindaloo is supposed to have been derived from the Portuguese Vin de Alho, which means wine and garlic.

Originally Vindaloo was wine and garlic based meat stew. Under the influence of local Goan cuisine, the recipe for Vindaloo was modified by the substitution of vinegar instead of wine and lots of local aromatic spices were added to it.
You can make this with your favorite meat or even a vegetarian version with mixed vegetables like carrots, turnips, peas and potatoes.

The chicken version is made usually with boneless chicken but I’ve added drumsticks too in this recipe because I think that meat with some bones makes tastier stews and gravies.

Okay, coming back to the chilli part of the dish…I think the heat factor doesn’t come just from red chillies…the ground spices also add their own kind of heat and a lot of complex flavors to the recipe. So if you cannot tolerate chillies, you can go easy on them and still enjoy a flavorful Vindaloo. I’m sure you don’t want to wake up with a heartburn the next day so adjust the quantity of chillies according to your level of tolerance 🙂

For Chicken Vindaloo with Potatoes:

• 2 chicken breasts, cut into 6 cubes each
• 4 chicken drumsticks
• 3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes as big as chicken cubes
• 3 medium onions
• 2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste
• 5 ripe tomatoes, puréed
• 3 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar or palm sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 2 teaspoons mustard powder
• 4 dry red chillies
• 4-5 cloves
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

This Is What You Do :

1. Add vinegar, sugar, cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, dry chillies, mustard powder, cloves, cinnamon powder and bay leaf to an electric blender and blitz a few seconds to make the fiery Vindaloo paste.
2. Marinate chicken pieces in this sauce for at least 30 minutes or you can do this a night before and make life easier for yourself when you need to cook !
3. Chop onions real fine or even better make a chunky purée in the processor. Heat oil in a wok or deep frying pan. Add onions and fry on medium heat till soft. Don’t let them turn dark brown or get burnt.
4. Add the marinated chicken and potatoes, continue to fry a few minutes till the chicken changes colour.
5. Add the marinade, ginger-garlic paste and puréed tomatoes. Bring the whole thing to a boil, reduce heat, add salt and 1 cup water, cover the pan.
6. Let the stew simmer for 35-40 minutes, meanwhile add more water if the masala becomes too dry.
7. The ready Vindaloo should have very tender chicken and potatoes coated with thick, spicy masala.
8. Garnish with green chillies and fresh coriander if desired. Serve hot with roti, naan or steamed rice.

Serves 4