Goan Pork Vindaloo With Potatoes : IHCC

"Root, Root, Root, for Root Veggies!" is our theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are currently cooking from Madhur Jaffrey's recipes. For this week's root veggies theme, I decided to cook the humble potatoes! Potatoes are the house favourite, and no matter how these wonderful root veggies are cooked, everyone will dig in for the potatoes first! 

I love Vindaloo dishes, which usually contains some vinegar, and can be very spicy, level of spiciness is easily adjusted to your preference, and with a mild sweetness. The addition of potatoes in Vindaloo dish is really delicious. The potatoes would have absorbed the taste of the spices and vinegar, and when simmered till soft and tender, is really yummy. When I've first came across this recipe of Madhur Jaffrey's, I knew that this is one dish that I must try. 

I cooked this dish in the morning, so that the flavours would blend together until my dinner time. Simply reheat it for just a short while over low heat just to warm it up before serving, or it can even be served at room temperature, if you prefer. This recipe does not disappoint me, it is very good. But, I did some changes  by doubling the spices! Yes, I love lots of gravy and from the look of the recipe, I can see that there would not be much gravy, so I doubled the spices, which I am glad that I did! So if you would like more gravy to eat with your rice, double the spices! I have omitted the paprika and added in more chilli powder. And the recipe uses 3 cups of water, which is way too much, I only used 2-1/4 cups of water.

The recipe states that to add the potatoes and simmer with the pork for 50-60 minutes until the pork is tender. I was thinking that the potatoes would turn to mashed potatoes by that time! So I added in the potatoes after simmering the pork for about 45-50 minutes,when the pork is tender, and continue on to simmer with the added potatoes for another 20 minutes over low heat until the potatoes are tender. By the time the dish is done, the pork and potatoes are coated with the thick gravy and smells good, you can smell the vinegar, really nice,  one of the traits of a Vindaloo dish! The delicious tender pork meat and the potatoes are really full of flavours from the spices and vinegar.

We had this Goan Pork Vindaloo with Potatoes with some plain Jasmine rice and stir-fried cabbage for our dinner. There was a small bowl of leftover that I was looking forward to have it for the next day, but both my kids took care of that later, they finished that small bowl between themselves, so there was no leftover! 

To view other delicious root veggies dishes that my friends are cooking, do stop by IHCC.

I'm sharing this with :
See Ya In The Gumbo hosted by Ms enPlace


I have given the original recipe as it is, my version for more gravy is indicated in blue.
Goan Pork Vindaloo with Potatoes
(adapted from : Good Food Channel, Madhur Jaffrey)
2 tsp mustard seeds (2 tsp + 1 tsp)
1 tsp cumin seeds (2 tsp)
2 tsp coriander seeds (4 tsp)
3 cloves (7 cloves)
1 medium onion, roughly chopped (3 medium)
2.5cm root ginger, peeled and chopped (7-8cm)
5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped (10 cloves)
2 tsp cider vinegar (5 tsp, to taste)
3/4-1 tsp chilli powder, depending on taste (5-6 tsp)
2 tsp paprika (omitted this)
1/2 tsp tumeric (1 tsp)
1/2 tsp ground black pepper (1 tsp)
560gm boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2.5cm chunks
3 tbsp olive oil, or sunflower oil
340gm waxy red potatoes, peeled and cut the same size as the pork (6 medium)
1/2 tsp caster sugar (1 tsp)
750ml water (560ml)
salt to taste

1. Put half the mustard seeds and all the cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cloves in a clean coffee grinder or spice grinder and grind as finely as possible.
2. Tip this spice mixture into a blender with the onion, garlic, ginger, vinegar, chilli powder, paprika and 3 tablespoons of water. Blend until smooth.
3. Rub 1 teaspoon of salt, all the turmeric, half a teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper and 2 tablespoons of your spice paste all over the pork. Put in a plastic food bag, seal and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or longer if desired.
4. Pour the oil into a large, heavy-based, non-stick, lidded pan and set it over a medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the remaining mustard seeds. As soon as they pop, which will be in a matter of seconds, put in the remaining spice paste. Stir and fry for five to six minutes, or until the paste is lightly browned.
5. Add the pork with its marinade and stir for a minute. Cover and reduce the heat to medium. Let the meat cook for about 10 minutes, lifting the lid now and then to stir, it should become lightly browned.
6. Pour in 750ml of water and add the potatoes, half a teaspoon of salt and the sugar. Stir and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low and cook very gently for 50-60 minutes or until the meat is tender, then serve. (Let pork simmer for about 45-50 minutes, stirring occasionally, when tender, add in the potatoes, cover and simmer for another 20 minutes until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally).