Goat Vindaloo
(an instructional guide)
it is the opinion of a friend of mine who, after such exhaustive research as working in an Indian restaurant and being Indian, believes that there is absolutely no reason to make your own Indian food. for the most part, she's right. much of it is too complicated and difficult to be worth the small amount of money saved.
Darkness, the infamous former roommate who should change his alias (I suspect it is leftover from his high school BBS days), has tried on at least two occasions to make naan. naan is flaky, somewhat flat bread with a golden, shiny crust. what he ends up with is closer to roti (which is pita-like), except roti usually could not be used as a material for wrestling mats. this is due to no incompetence of his (well, maybe a little), but rather, owes to the monstrously intricate recipes.
vindaloo is different. if you've stewed or braised meat before, you can do it. I recommend goat, but you can use lamb with similar results. I want to try it with mutton some day. alternately, if you are a wuss, you can use chicken. chicken is really better with masala sauce though, if you ask me (go to a restaurant).
Vindaloo For Two:
1/2 lb meat, cut up for stew (butchers will do the cutting/deboning if you ask)
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup water
1 medium onion
2 tsp minced garlic (not the dried stuff)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp mustard (or 1/2 tsp dried ground mustard seed)
cider vinegar
oil or butter
note: safflower or sunflower oil recommended - if you use canola or corn oil, just stop now, because you obviously don't care about your food tasting good, and you might as well just put curry powder on your Hot Pockets. that's another thing. curry powder is an English invention; it has several wrong ingredients, and the ones that are right are in the wrong proportions. stay away from it.
mix the spices and mustard together. wet with cider vinegar til you have a thick paste, spread it thinly on the meat, and let it marinate. four hours or so for goat, less for lamb, depending on the cut. in the fridge on a covered plate is probably the most sanitary way to do this. save any spice paste you've got left over.
chop up the onion and brown it in oil or butter. you may want to use a pot instead of a frying pan; if you do go the pan route, it should be a good-sized one. when it is turning color (the onion, not the pan. that comes later), throw in the meat and minced garlic. brown that as well - make sure the meat is browned on each side. scrape in all the excess spice paste, pour in the coconut milk and water, stir, and boil for 5 minutes or so.
for that authentic Indian restaurant feel, smoke a cigarette while it boils to keep yourself busy. stir the stuff again (it has a weird color to it, and it burbles in such an appealing way that it will make you wish you were using a cauldron. also, it will take several washings to remove the color and odor from your cookware). anyway, it's done boiling. lower the heat, cover, and simmer for an hour to an hour and a half. goat meat is tough, and it's traditional for the onions to almost melt, so don't worry - you're not cooking it for too long.
serve over basmati rice, maybe with a few lentils thrown in.
Darkness, the infamous former roommate who should change his alias (I suspect it is leftover from his high school BBS days), has tried on at least two occasions to make naan. naan is flaky, somewhat flat bread with a golden, shiny crust. what he ends up with is closer to roti (which is pita-like), except roti usually could not be used as a material for wrestling mats. this is due to no incompetence of his (well, maybe a little), but rather, owes to the monstrously intricate recipes.
vindaloo is different. if you've stewed or braised meat before, you can do it. I recommend goat, but you can use lamb with similar results. I want to try it with mutton some day. alternately, if you are a wuss, you can use chicken. chicken is really better with masala sauce though, if you ask me (go to a restaurant).
Vindaloo For Two:
1/2 lb meat, cut up for stew (butchers will do the cutting/deboning if you ask)
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup water
1 medium onion
2 tsp minced garlic (not the dried stuff)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp mustard (or 1/2 tsp dried ground mustard seed)
cider vinegar
oil or butter
note: safflower or sunflower oil recommended - if you use canola or corn oil, just stop now, because you obviously don't care about your food tasting good, and you might as well just put curry powder on your Hot Pockets. that's another thing. curry powder is an English invention; it has several wrong ingredients, and the ones that are right are in the wrong proportions. stay away from it.
mix the spices and mustard together. wet with cider vinegar til you have a thick paste, spread it thinly on the meat, and let it marinate. four hours or so for goat, less for lamb, depending on the cut. in the fridge on a covered plate is probably the most sanitary way to do this. save any spice paste you've got left over.
chop up the onion and brown it in oil or butter. you may want to use a pot instead of a frying pan; if you do go the pan route, it should be a good-sized one. when it is turning color (the onion, not the pan. that comes later), throw in the meat and minced garlic. brown that as well - make sure the meat is browned on each side. scrape in all the excess spice paste, pour in the coconut milk and water, stir, and boil for 5 minutes or so.
for that authentic Indian restaurant feel, smoke a cigarette while it boils to keep yourself busy. stir the stuff again (it has a weird color to it, and it burbles in such an appealing way that it will make you wish you were using a cauldron. also, it will take several washings to remove the color and odor from your cookware). anyway, it's done boiling. lower the heat, cover, and simmer for an hour to an hour and a half. goat meat is tough, and it's traditional for the onions to almost melt, so don't worry - you're not cooking it for too long.
serve over basmati rice, maybe with a few lentils thrown in.
