Sunday, August 27, 2017

Kerala pork curry

This is more of a Kerala inspired pork curry recipe than an actual one. We had a bunch of left over dosa batter and a piece of karré that needed using and et voila. I googled around and matched recipes with the ingredients that I had. Since I was basically making up the recipe I chose not to grind the spices but the pressure cooker was unavoidable else this would have been a 3-4 hour long cook time as opposed to the one hour in toto that this was.

Ingredients

  • 1.5 kg karré (or boston butt or picnicbog or pork shoulder etc)
  • 3.5 tsp ginger garlic paste
  • 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 3 Tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 250g shallots sliced, not too finely
  • 2 large onions sliced, not too finely
  • 2 large tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 large or 4 small potatoes, chopped
  • 1.5 tsp mustard seeds
  • 0.5 tsp fenugreek seeds
  • 0.5 tsp coriander seeds
  • 0.5-1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 0.5-1 tsp peppercorns
  • 2 sprigs curry leaves
  • 3-4 green chillis, chopped
  • 3.5 tsp ginger garlic paste
  • 2 Tbps coriander powder
  • 2-3 Tbsps meat masala powder (I used goan mutton masala)
  • Salt

Method

  1. Cut the pork into 1" ish chunks and marinate with about two teaspoons of salt, one teaspoon of turmeric, 1.5 tsp of ginger garlic paste and the vinegar and the soy sauce. Mix well and leave at room temperature for a bit or in the fridge if longer than an hour.
  2. Heat a teaspoon of oil in a pressure cooker and add the marinated pork. No need to fry the pieces. Add two cups of water and pressure cook the meat. (For this amount and this type of meat I pressure cooked for 20 minutes after the first whistle on medium heat)
  3. In a pan heat up oil and add a teaspoon and a half of mustard seeds followed by half a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds, half a teaspoon of coriander seeds, 3/4 teaspoon fennel seeds and about 20 peppercorns. 
  4. Now add a handful of curry leaves. Since I was using frozen curry leaves, this is a total guesstimate. 
  5. Now add the onions and a dash of salt and fry until golden brown.
  6. Add the chopped green chillis and ginger garlic paste when the onions are light brown and cook until the raw smell disappears and the onions and golden brown.
  7. Next, add the masala powders and cook for a few minutes, then the potatoes and then the tomatoes and the tomato paste, stirring and cooking for a few minutes after each addition.
  8. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes on a medium-low heat until the tomatoes and squishy and the masala is beginning to look cohesive
  9. Add the pork along with the water and cook for 15 minutes on medium heat to thicken and reduce the liquid if need be. If the meat doesn't feel tender enough, cook covered for longer or pressure cook the meat again for a few more whistles
  10. Mash a few pieces of the potato to thicken the gravy and cook a few more minutes
  11. Serve with dosa or idli or appams or rice or roti. It's all good.