Re: [CH] Vindaloo
David Smith (david@dwsmith.demon.co.uk)
Mon, 15 Feb 1999 20:21:07 +0000
Porter Banister wrote:
> I suspect that the Vindaloo X2 that you ordered and enjoyed, wasn't
> even at true Vindaloo X1 heat level. An authentic Goan vindaloo
> would not need any smoked hab powder to acheive real CH levels. It
> has to do with the role that the supporting spices play in that
> dish. They come together in concert so as to not allow one's
> tastebuds any respite from the chiles. The heat just builds and
> builds and builds. I don't know quite what is at work there, but it
> is a dish I have an enormous amount of respect for as a chilehead.
> David Smith - can you add your comment here? I defer to your greater
> knowledge on the subject. (and you too, Brent Thompson)
Wha? Uh me? Sorry. I miss reading the digests for a couple of days
and when I catch up someone's calling me.
I'll comment but I'm not sure I have the answer. Like many classic
dishes I suspect there are as many vindaloo recipes as there are cooks
(as with Bolognese sauce or chili !).
"Vindaloo" literally means wine vinegar and garlic. Some vindaloo
recipes I have seen use tamarind as the souring agent rather than
vinegar. The point about a real vindaloo is that it is hot and sour.
I should think it is the souring agent that amplifies the chile heat
and makes the burn last (the opposite effect to dairy products
softening the heat).
The type of chile used might also hold the key. Mary-Anne wrote that
they use Surya chiles in Goa. I am envious that she has eaten the
real thing in its home country. My experience is limited to cooking
from recipes and eating in restaurants.
Most restaurants here would use ground bird eye chiles but then
restaurant vindaloo is often just a hot standard curry with potato
rather than being the hot and sour Goan version. Some restaurants go
further and also offer a "phal" (hotter still) or even a "tindaloo".
The tindaloo is a restaurant invention and you need to be a top gun
Chile-Head (not me) / blind drunk / barking mad in order to eat it!
Personally, if I want a really hot curry I go for chicken chile
masala which is cooked with plenty of fresh green cayennes sliced in
half lengthways. Tons of heat but tons of flavour too.
cheers,
David
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