By tradition, vindaloos are very spicy so my recipe title is redundant but figured I should include the disclaimer if you’ve never experienced a vindaloo dish. Yes, there are quite a few ingredients in this dish, but don’t let that stop you from making this highly flavorful curry. The actual process of making this dish is easy!
I’ve broken down the process into 4 easy steps: prep, marinate, cook the base, make the sauce, and done! That’s it! Enjoy this spicy, savory meal with some red rice, moru curry, and pappadam.
If you decide to make this tag me @thefoodiecutie on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter or comment below with how this turns out for you 🙂
INGREDIENTS
- Chicken Thighs, 2-3lbs, with bone (you can use boneless chicken or other meat)
- Lemon Juice, juice of 1 lemon
- Ghee, 2 tbsp, melted
Marinade
- Yogurt, ¼ cup (preferably dahi yogurt)
- Raw Cashews, ½ cup
- Ginger, 1 inch, minched
- Garlic, 8 cloves, minced
- Green Chilis, 2, chopped
- Cloves, 8
- Black Cardamom, 2 pods
- Star Anise, 2
- Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Methi Leaves), 1 tbsp
- Garam Masala, 1 tsp
- Red Chili Powder, 1 tsp
- Coriander Powder, 2 tsp
- Cumin Seeds, 2 tsp
- Black Salt, 1 tsp
- Salt, 1 tbsp
Sauce
- Ghee, 3 tbsp
- Onion, 1, thinly sliced
- Ginger, 1 inch, minced
- Turmeric, ½ tsp
- Coriander, 1 tsp
- Red Chili Powder, 1 tsp
- Tomato Paste, 1 tbsp
- Tomato, 1, medium dice (I use roma)
- Warm Milk, ½ cup (you can use heavy cream or coconut milk as subs)
- Warm Water, ½ cup
- Vinegar, 1 tbsp
- Garam Masala, 1 tsp
- Dry Mango Powder (Amchur), 1 tsp
- Fresh Cilantro, ½ cup, chopped
HOW TO MAKE IT
Prep. Start by cleaning your chicken thighs. I removed the top layer of fat and then cut the meaty edges off the bone leaving some meat on the bone then cubing up the cut off portions. This way I have a mix of boneless and bone-in chicken. Keeping the bone also gives more flavor to your overall dish.
Marinate. In a large mixing bowl, squeeze the fresh lemon juice over the chicken. To make the marinade, blend all of the ingredients under “marinade” in a blender until smooth. Pour this mixture over the chicken along with the melted ghee. Mix this well and refrigerate for an hour or overnight.
The Base. Now to start the base for the sauce. In a deep skillet or dutch oven, heat up 3 tbsp of ghee. Once hot, add in the onions and saute until they become soft/lightly golden. Add in the ginger and cook until soft. All at once, add in the turmeric, coriander, and red chili powder – be ready to add the tomato paste and fresh tomatoes after to avoid burning the spices. Once you mix in the dry spices, mix in the tomato paste and tomatoes. Let the tomatoes cook until soft and mash them down.
The Sauce. Add in the marinated chicken and cover on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes to allow the chicken to cook and the sauce to form. While this cooks, mix together the warm milk, warm water, vinegar, garam masala, and amchur in a bowl. (You can add these ingredients in separately, but I prefer to mix together to unite the flavors). After the chicken has cooked, pour in the milk mixture. Mix evenly and let this cook for 2-3 minutes to allow it to incorporate and thicken the sauce. Sprinkle in fresh cilantro and done!
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