Chicken Vindaloo

Chicken Vindaloo

The weekend to kick-off summer proved to be rather rainy and cold (thanks New England) so when were preparing dinner on Friday, we were more in the mood for something heart warming. We decided on trying a new recipe, chicken vindaloo, and it was perfect. This recipe is definitely a keeper (I admit, I literally licked the plate) and since most of it can be prepared ahead of time, we will definitely bring it out for a dinner party some night.

If you enjoy Indian food, investing in these spices is worth it. Once you try this dish, you'll be making it a lot! For those of you who are local to Boston, we bought most of the spices (the ones in the bags) at Polcari's Coffee in the North End.

Chicken Vindaloo
Recipe by Madhur Jaffrey (adapted)

Ingredients
2 teaspoons cumin seed
3 chiles, dried
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon cardamom pods
1 cinnamon stick or 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons black mustard seed
1 teaspoon whole fenugreek seed
5 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
Vegetable oil
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
1 1/3 cups water
2 pounds boneless chicken, cubed
1 inch ginger, peeled and crushed
1 head garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tablespoon coriander seed, ground
1 1/2 teaspoons tumeric, ground
8 oz. tomato sauce
3-4 potatoes, roughly chopped

Directions

Vindaloo Paste (you can make this ahead of time and freeze it):

1. Grind cumin seeds, red chilies, peppercorns, cardamom seeds, cinnamon, black mustard seeds, and fenugreek seeds. Put the spice mixture in a bowl and mix in vinegar, salt, and sugar.

2. Cook onions in oil over medium heat in a large pan, until they are brown/crispy. Remove the onions and puree them in a food processor with 2-3 tablespoons of water. Add this puree to the ground spice mixture.

The rest:

1. Puree ginger and garlic in a food processor with 2-3 tablespoons of water. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat. Cook chicken cubes, until they are lightly brown on all slides. Remove from the pan and set aside.

3. Add the ginger-garlic paste to the same pan over medium heat. Stir for a few seconds and add the coriander and tumeric.

4. Add the chicken, potatoes, vindaloo paste, tomato sauce and approximately 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil. Cover and turn heat to low, allowing the dish to simmer for an hour or until the chicken is tender and the potatoes are cooked.