Priyakshi Duarah: A spicy tasty Goan dish, with soft and tender pork pieces for lazy weekend lunch. Goes extremely well with steamed rice.
Ingredients
- 15 dried Kashmiri chilies
- 2 teaspoons toasted whole cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 (1-inch) pieces of cinnamon
- 9 whole black peppercorns
- 7 whole cloves
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 10 garlic flakes (or 2 medium cloves garlic, roughly chopped)
- 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup of palm vinegar
- 1/2 pound pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup of water
Method:
Combine chilies, cumin, turmeric, 1 piece of cinnamon, 5 peppercorns, 4 cloves, and sugar in a grinder. Grind until the powder is smooth and fine. Transfer spice mixture to a food processor or mortar and pestle and add garlic, ginger, and vinegar. Pound until a fine paste is formed.
Place pork in a large bowl and season with salt. Add half of the spice paste and turn the pork to coat. Add onion to the food processor and process until a paste is formed. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion paste, remaining 4 peppercorns, remaining cinnamon stick, and remaining 3 cloves.
Cook, stirring constantly until onion is soft and oil is fragrant for about 5 minutes. Add remaining spice paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the oil separates and mixture starts to sizzle for 5 minutes.
Add pork and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer, cover, and cook until the pork is soft, about 1 hour longer.
Serve immediately with steamed rice.