Vindaloo Recipe

There are two types of Vindaloo Recipe. The authentic kind from Goa and the kind you get in western restaurants. I will give you both here.
The first vindaloo was taken to India by the Portuguese, who arrived there in the 1490s. It was originally a meat dish with wine and garlic called Carne de Vinha d'Alhos. The Goans soon adapted it, replacing vinegar for wine and adding spices, creating a rich, spicy (but not overly hot) meat dish, usually made with pork.
Over the centuries, the dish spread throughout India and became a favourite for weddings, with chicken or lamb substituted for pork and cooked with potatoes. No doubt this happened because 'aloo' means potato in Hindi. The hot and spicy vindaloo served  in restaurants has little or no relation to its ancestor, its just that the Punjabis who started most British curry restaurants looked to Southern India for names for spicy dishes and so vindaloo became the next step up from 'Madras' in chilli strength.

Traditional Goan Vindaloo
This traditional recipe serves 6-8 and comes from Mrs Parrikar of Vasco, Goa. It is meant to use one duck, though it is the same spicing she uses for pork or lamb. You can adapt it for smaller quantities. Note that it requires 24 hours for the meat to marinate: less time will impair the flavour.
2lb pork, lamb or a duck
4 garlic cloves, mashed
12-14 whole peppercorns
2-3 bay leaves
6 cloves
5 green cardamons
2 sticks (3-4 inches each) cinnamon
2.5cm (1 inch) fresh ginger root, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground chilli
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground cumin
115 ml (4 oz) malt vinegar
½ teaspoon salt

Cut your meat into large cubes (or pieces in the case of duck). Put the whole spices (except the bayleaves and peppercorns) into a dry frying pan and roast gently for 2 minutes; add the dry spices and allow to roast over a very low heat for another minute. Grind to a fine powder in a coffee grinder or pestle and mortar and add to the vinegar together with the salt. Marinate the meat in the spicy vinegar for 24 hours.
When you're ready cover the bottom of a thick pan with oil (traditionally you would use mustard oil, but I use olive oil) and add the meat and spices mixture, chuck in the peppercorns and bay leaves and simmer gently over a low heat for 2 hours or until the meat is tender. Serve hot.

Restaurant-Style Chicken Vindaloo
1½lbs (675 gms) chicken breast fillets chopped into bite-size chunks
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2.5cm (1 inch ginger root, chopped finely
1-2 fresh green chillies, de-seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1-2 teaspoons ground chilli powder (as required)
2 large tomatoes, chopped

Place your onions in a saucepan or wok and cook over a low heat with a sprinkle of salt until they are showing signs of going golden brown. Add the garlic, ginger and fresh chillies and cook until the whole mixture is soft and lightly brown. Remove and liquidize in a blender or food processor, together with 200ml (7 oz) of cold water. Set your curry gravy aside for a little while.
Add a little more oil to your pan, throw in all your spice ingredients (everything but the chicken, tomatoes and onion gravy mixture) and cook over a low heat for a minute or two until the spices release their full flavours. Add the tomatoes and a drop more cold water and cook until it becomes thick and the tomatoes have broken down. Then add the chicken, give it a stir, drop in the onion gravy and simmer over a gentle heat, stirring all the while to prevent sticking. Cook for about 15 minutes, adding more water, if the gravy starts to stick.
Test your chicken to see if it's cooked. The easiest way is to take a chunk out of the pan and slice it in half. If it's perfectly white all the way through (no sign of pink flesh), then it's cooked. If not, give it more time.

There. Two variations on the perfect Vindaloo Recipe.