This week I cooked Indian food for the first time ever. I've shied away from it up til now, because truth be told I haven't really ever eaten Indian food. I don't think the Amy's frozen meals my erstwhile vegetarian sister (coincidentally also named Amy) introduced us to should count. I was going to go Chinese with the Boston butt I bought, but I didn't plan so well and ended up having to go with this pantry-friendly recipe I had copied out of CI's Best Meat Recipe a few months ago.
Completely new to me, pork vindaloo is a moderately spicy Indian pork stew with some sort of Portugese ancestry as well. I was missing two spices called for by this recipe, cardamom and mustard seeds, but between the cumin, cayenne, and tremendous amount of aromatics (3 onions and 8 garlic cloves) I figured I'd be okay with those omissions. (To any Indian cooks reading, don't make fun of me, but I stirred in a little Dijon in a half-hearted attempt to make up for the mustard seeds. I can't help it, I'm increasingly of the persuasion that Dijon makes everything better. Strange indeed from someone who thought it tasted like pungent old shoes that made your nose hurt up til a couple years ago.)
I made the stew in the morning, as it takes about half an hour of stovetop cooking, then 2 hours (with no stirring or shifting or checking!) in a 300 degree oven. The no stirring etc. part is rare for CI recipes, so I was elated to see that for once I could forget about the kitchen and get on with other things during those two hours. I reheated it for dinner and served it over a rice pilaf with shallot and a touch of cinnamon, and this green bean dish (which is easily decreased by a third to make just enough for two side servings). Everything was delicious. The stew I definitely want to try again with the mustard seeds, as I think they'd add some necessary heat. Flavor-wise even with my omissions (and amateur addition) it was very good. I also don't know why I don't make rice pilaf more often: it's about 2% more difficult than throwing rice directly into boiling water, and so much tastier. The green beans---wow. I really wasn't sure how such a Southern staple vegetable would taste in the coconut milk and spices, but it worked, majorly. I'd call this first foray into Indian cooking (whether or not it may be judged authentic) a success.
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