Type | Curry |
---|---|
Course | Main course(gravy) |
Place of origin | India |
Region or state | Goa |
Main ingredients | Vinegar, sugar, ginger, spices, chili peppers |
Vindaloo (also known as vindalho) is an Indian curry dish popular in the region of Goa, the surrounding Konkan, and many other parts of India. The cuisine also includes a variation of the dish. However, it is known globally in its Anglo-Indian form as a staple of curry house and Indian restaurant menus, often regarded as a fiery, spicy dish, even though it is not necessarily the spiciest dish available.
A "vindaloo", a standard element of Indian cuisine derived from the Portuguese carne de vinha d'alhos (literally "meat in garlic wine marinade"), is a dish of meat (usually pork) marinated in wine and garlic. The basic structure of the Portuguese dish was the Portuguese sailor's "preserved" raw ingredients, packed in wooden barrels of alternate layers of pork and garlic, and soaked in wine. This was "Indianized" by the local Goan cooks with the substitution of palm vinegar for the red wine, and the addition of dried red chili peppers with additional spices. It evolved into the localized and easy-to-pronounce dish "vindaloo". Nowadays, the Anglo-Indian version of vindaloo calls for the meat to be marinated in vinegar, sugar, fresh ginger and spices overnight, then cooked with the addition of more spices.
Restaurants in Goa offering traditional Goan cuisine serve vindaloo with pork, which is the original recipe. The dish was popularized by Goan cooks (whom the British favoured because they had no issues in kitchens and bars when handling beef, pork or liquor) in the British establishments and the ocean-going liners. This dish is still available on the P&O liners in its original "pork vindaloo" form. However, restaurants outside Goa serve vindaloo with chicken or lamb, which is sometimes mixed with cubed potatoes. Even though the word aloo (आलू) means potato in Hindi, traditional vindaloo does not include potatoes.