Chicken Vindaloo
Updated Dec. 13, 2023
- Total Time
- 2 hours 10 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour 30 minutes, plus at least 30 minutes’ marinating
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 15whole black peppercorns (or ¼ teaspoon black pepper)
- 8whole cloves (or ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves)
- 5 to 6Kashmiri red chiles, stemmed, to taste (or about 2 teaspoons Kashmiri red chile powder)
- 1(3-inch) cinnamon stick (or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon)
- 1teaspoon cumin seeds (or ¾ teaspoon ground cumin)
- 10garlic cloves
- 1(2-inch) piece ginger, peeled and quartered
- 4tablespoons apple cider vinegar, plus more as needed
- 8chicken drumsticks (about 2¼ pounds), skins removed (see Tip)
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 1teaspoon ground turmeric
- ¼cup grapeseed or vegetable oil
- 2medium yellow onions, finely chopped
- 2tablespoons tomato paste (optional)
- 1teaspoon granulated sugar, plus more as needed
- Cilantro leaves, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
229 calories; 15 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 12 grams protein; 625 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat a large, heavy-bottomed pan with a lid over medium heat. Once hot, add the peppercorns, cloves, Kashmiri chiles, cinnamon stick and cumin seeds. (If using preground spices, do not toast.) Swirl the pan around, or toss the spices with a wooden spoon, and toast until fragrant, about 1 minute, taking care not to burn the spices. Transfer to a small plate to cool.
- Step 2
Once spices are cool, place in a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle, breaking up the cinnamon and chiles, if needed; grind to a fine powder. Add the garlic, ginger, vinegar and 3 tablespoons water, and continue grinding until the mixture becomes a smooth paste. (If using preground spices, finely grate the garlic and ginger into a small bowl, then mix in the pepper, cloves, chile powder, cinnamon, cumin, vinegar and water to form the paste.)
- Step 3
Place the drumsticks in a large bowl and make a shallow slit in the thickest part of the flesh; this helps all the flavors seep into the chicken and helps it cook evenly. Season with salt (about 2 teaspoons) and the turmeric. Add the curry paste to the chicken and mix until coated. Cover and marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours in the refrigerator.
- Step 4
In the same pan used to toast the spices, heat the oil over medium-high. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, and season the onions with a little salt. If using the tomato paste, make a little well in the middle and add it to the pan. Cook until its color has deepened, drizzling in a little more oil, if needed, about 1 minute.
- Step 5
Add the chicken and all the marinade, sprinkle on the sugar, stir and cook just until the chicken takes on a little color, about 5 minutes. Add ¼ cup of water, bring to a simmer, and cover. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring and occasionally turning the drumsticks, until the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 45 minutes. The chicken will release its own liquid; check the gravy occasionally and add more water as needed, depending on whether you’d like a drier or juicier curry. As the chicken cooks, taste and adjust salt, sugar and vinegar — the vindaloo should have enough spice to make you take notice but not overpower all the other flavors. Top with cilantro and serve.
- A butcher can remove the skin from the drumsticks. Or, do it yourself by using one hand to hold the fleshy end of the drumstick with a paper towel, and the opposite hand to pull off the skin with another paper towel.
Private Notes
Comments
All the vindaloos I've ever had are spicy hot. Kashmiri peppers are not spicy. They are mainly used as the bright red colouring agent in Tandoori. As I believe Vindaloo is supposed to be somewhat hot, in part, due to the vinegar -- just check the ingredients on your favorite hot sauce -- I use any type of hot chili here from flakes, to habaneros, chipotles or bird chili depending on the audience. The zing comes from the black pepper, but it needs to be fresh and of good quality.
Korean chili powder (gochugaru) is a fine substitute for Kashmiri chili, in my experience. Both are on the mild side with a bright red color.
I am a Goan and that is where the dish originated. We add potatoes to make the dish more cost effective and cook until they get the flavor of the hot liquid. Yes a vindaloo is supposed to be on the hot side and hotter than most curries. yes Kashmiri pepper are not very spicy but they have good flavor and so we also add spicier chilis to jack up the heat.
Is there a part of the recipe you don't mention where you blend /puree the gravy? In a lot of recipes like this, the picture looks more like a sauce but before adding the chicken and marinade its only diced onions and tomato paste. Onions don't melt, so my re-creation of this just looks like chicken and red colored diced onions. It tastes very good - but I don't understand how the steps in this recipe result in the picture- it looks like a sauce, how can that happen just from simmering onions
Very nice vindaloo indeed. Added a bit more chili flakes for spicyness, as well as a dash of smoked paprika.
Excellent! I didn’t add the tomato paste (to keep it authentic), and used all ground spices.
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