pork masala

The LAM and I love Indian food, especially North Indian food.

I mean, what's not to like? It is, without a doubt, one of the most flavorful cuisines one can eat.

I have always wanted to learn to cook some Indian dishes. My few attempts at experimenting by reading cookbooks had failed miserably (oh, they were BAD) and I had somewhat given up all hopes of being able to cook Indian food.

Then a few months ago, one of the sisters of my very good friend, Bal, came to teach me to make this gorgeous chicken masala. We loved it so much, I cooked it for Aden's 4th birthday party.

Last week, Kulwant came over to teach me how to cook another Indian dish, this time, with pork! I was over the moon because we love pork, and I so rarely see pork curries in restaurants.

We started with pork - meat (and bones) from the shoulder. You can also use prime ribs for this.

The pork was blanched with boiling water - just pour boiling water over the pork - and drained.

This was set aside.

In a heated Dutch oven, I sauteed sliced red onions in a little vegetable oil for about 10-15 minutes. I detest the taste of raw onions, so I made sure my onions were well-cooked.

In a blender, I blended ginger and garlic with a little water.

This was added to the onions.

And followed by the crushed tomatoes, as well as yogurt.

Everything was stirred together, then the pork was added.

I covered the Dutch oven with a lid, and cooked this on medium heat for 1-1.5 hours, depending on how soft you prefer the meat to be.

Remember to give everything a stir every 10 minutes or so.

As it cooked down, there would be more liquid in the pot.

At the end of the cooking process (in the final 10 minutes), I added the chili powder, curry powder and salt.

To serve, I topped the curry with chopped coriander and sliced green chili.

 
This is super, super good. Do cook more so you would have left-overs because this tasted even better the following day!

RECIPE
Pork Masala (Serves 8-10)
Recipe from my friend, Kulwant Kaur

Ingredients:
1.5kg pork shoulder, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 piece thumb-sized ginger, peeled and cut
10 cloves garlic, peeled
6 medium red onions, sliced thinly
1 can (28oz) crushed tomato
2 tablespoons natural yogurt
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 tablespoons curry powder for meat
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 bunch coriander, chopped (optional)
2 green chilies, sliced (optional)

Method:
1. Blanch pork with boiling water. Drain and set aside.
2. Saute onion in a little vegetable oil in a Dutch oven until the onions are cooked through and have slightly caramelised, about 10-15 minutes.
3. Blend garlic and ginger with a little water. Add this to onions. Stir.
4. Add crushed tomato, yogurt and pork. Stir to combine.
5. Simmer, covered, on medium heat for 1-1.5 hours, depending on how tender you prefer the meat to be.
6. Whisk chili powder, curry powder and salt in a bowl. In the last 10 minutes of cooking, add this to the curry and stir to combine thoroughly. Check (and adjust) seasonings.
7. Serve with chopped coriander and sliced green chilies.