Pork Vindaloo or Vindalho De Porco

From Portugal to Goa to the UK

When I arrived in the UK in the 80s nearly everyone I met declared that they loved Indian food and then proceeded to rattle off names of their favourites like Vindaloo, Dhansak, Bhuna, Madras, Phaal, Korma and Rogan Josh. Some of these like Korma, and Rogan Josh were familiar to me as they are north Indian dishes and I grew up in Delhi. I soon found out that they were very different from the way they are cooked in India and I have to admit that I didnt like the Korma as it was sweet and very unlike the spicy and fragrant dish I knew. Others like Dhansak and Vindaloo were also known to me because they are of Western Indian origin and my forebears were from Maharashtra. Then there were dishes I’d never actually heard of like Balti and Phaal and I must confess that I still have no idea what a Phaal is. Phaal apparently occupies the top position as the hottest curry, often followed by Vindaloo in second place. This too is quite unlike Goan Vindaloo which evolved from a Portuguese dish. Clearly Vindaloo has had transnational appeal, metamorphosing across continents. Here is its story.

Madeira to Goa

When the Portuguese began to colonise the western coast of India in the early 1500s they introduced new fruit crops like pineapple, cashew nuts, tobacco and of course chillies that have completely transformed Indian food. The Portuguese ruled Goa for nearly 450 years until 1961, leaving a deep footprint on the food and culture of its people, and a legacy of dishes like Vindaloo, Sorpotel, Caldinho, and Bebinca that have absorbed local cooking techniques and spicing traditions.

Indian Vindaloo evolved from the Madeiran dish known as Carne de Vinhas d’alhos – or meat preserved in wine and garlic. Legend has it that it was brought to India by the Portuguese on their ships but that seems incredible given the length of the journey and the harsh conditions. Maria Teresa Menezes, who has extensively documented Goan Catholic recipes says that meat cooked in this way can keep for a long time and it was carried by travellers. The dish evolved in India with the influences of local spices such as cloves, black pepper and cassia to its present form. Indian Vindaloo has an almost pickle or confit-like quality as meat is cooked in its own fat with minimal water and uses vinegar liberally. It also contains more heat in the form of chillies which of course were brought to India by the Portuguese.

What meat?

While there is no doubt that the original vindaloo was made with pork, there appears to be some lack of clarity about the cut of pork that should be used. Some modern recipes recommend lean pork possibly because of the contemporary fear of consuming animal fat. Others recommend the robust cut of pork shoulder. But some of the older Goan family recipes use fatty cuts of pork. Menezes’s recipe calls for pork belly and the dish is cooked in the fat without the use of oil. Food historian KT Achaya says Vindaloo is made of pork meat, pork fat and blood. It was usual practice to utilise as much of the animal as possible so the use of blood would not be surprising.

Eating pork may not have been acceptable among the higher caste Hindus of the native population before the Portuguese arrived. Although pork would have been consumed by some communities, the Portuguese violently enforced a change in local food habits and customs during the Inquisitions . That transition was brutal as Shefali Vaidya observes “The Portuguese did not just impose Christianity on the people of Goa, they ensured the complete erasure of the local culture, language, and even attire.” It is a part of food history we often forget when tucking into a declicious meal.

How hot?

It is quite likely that the original recipe of pork vindaloo was not super hot because the chillies grown in the region are mild - the Bedige chilli (same as Byadgi in northern Karnataka). These impart a lovely red colour without the searing heat. Nowadays people substitute Bedige/Byadgi chilli with Kashmiri chilli which has similar properties. Whatever the combination of chilli, there is no doubt that it is milder than the British version.

And the key ingredient?

The defining ingredient in Vindaloo is vinegar. The original Madeiran receipe for Carne Vinha d’Alhos contains both white wine and red wine vinegar. Historian Lizzie Collingham says that there was no vinegar in India when the Portuguese arrived, so the enterprising catholic priests came up with coconut toddy vinegar. However that seems very unlikely as toddy naturally contains bacteria that turn wine to vinegar very quickly. Also, vinegars of various kinds have been known in India since ancient times. They find mention in ancient Buddhist texts as well as the Indian medical text Sushruta Samhita dating back to the 4th Century.

Several newer recipes in circulation call for tamarind although none of the older ones seem to mention it. KT Achaya in his book (p83, 187) refers to Kokum as the souring agent for Vindaloo. Again, this is not beyond the realms of imagination as it grows in the region.

Older Portuguese Goan family recipes call for palm toddy vinegar. But they also include a dash of coconut feni which is a strong distilled alcoholic drink. This can be substituted with Vodka for the alcohol content but the flavour profile would be different. Here is a recipe adapted from the recipe by Menezes with a few modifications to reflect the ingredients that are widely available in the UK.

Recipe Pork Vindaloo

For four people

Ingredients:

800 g pork belly cut into 2" cubes

1 large onion

6 large cloves of garlic

2 inches root ginger

salt

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp ground cumin (fresh is best)

1/2 tsp turmeric

4 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder

4 tablespoons white wine vinegar

8 cloves

10 black peppercorns

2” cassia bark

Shot of vodka

2-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar.

Method:

Grind the onion, ginger, and garlic and mix with salt, white wine vinegar, cumin and turmeric. Marinate the meat in this for at least two hours, preferably overnight. To cook, place the marinated meat in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add a tablespoon of white wine vinegar, the whole spices and vodka and simmer on low heat for two hours or until the meat is completely tender. There should be a rich sauce. Adjust salt and chilli levels. Serve.