This Chicken Vindaloo recipe is a tangy, spicy Goan curry with Portuguese roots and a spicy kick from red chilies and vinegar. Easy to make at home, it delivers authentic restaurant-style flavor.
Vindaloo curry is spicier than Chicken Madras or Chicken Jalfrezi. Here's how to make this with step-by-step photos and a quick video tutorial. Serve it with pav, roti, Greek Yogurt Naan, or steamed rice for a spicy, satisfying meal.
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What is Chicken Vindaloo?
Chicken Vindaloo is a spicy, tangy Goan curry influenced by Portuguese cuisine. The name comes from ‘vin’ (vinegar) and ‘alho’ (garlic).
Traditionally made with pork, it’s now popular with chicken and other ingredients like shrimp, beef, lamb, vegetables, or tofu.
Authentic flavor comes from homemade vindaloo masala with whole spices, vinegar, and garlic. If you love vindaloo, you might also enjoy other curry house classics like Dishoom Chicken Ruby, Chicken Pathia, and Chicken Balti.
About This Chicken Vindaloo Recipe
I had this chicken vindaloo recently at a Goan restaurant. This chicken vindaloo stands out from other Indian curries with its concentrated flavors and reduced sauce. It tastes amazing. There is a perfect balance of flavors like tanginess from vinegar, subtle heat from dried Kashmiri red chilies, and a hint of sweetness from sugar.
When I tasted this chicken vindaloo, I knew I had to share it on my blog. Just like Chicken Xacuti, this vindaloo curry has a perfect balance of flavors, and I can't wait for you to try it. My Goan neighbor offered their family's secret recipe for vindalho curry, which has been made for generations.
I've modified it for chicken, although their version calls for pork or lamb. For this spicy chicken vindaloo, tender pieces of chicken are marinated in a fragrant homemade vindaloo masala paste, then slow-cooked with caramelized onions until they're infused with deep flavor.
You may also like some other popular chicken recipes from this website
Ingredients Notes
If you are a curry lover, you can make this goan chicken vindaloo easily with the ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. The main parts of the dish are meat (like pork or chicken), vinegar, and some spicy stuff like peppercorns, chilies, garlic, ginger, and mustard seeds. Check out the recipe card below for a detailed list of ingredients and measurements.
- Chicken - Bone-in chicken (curry-cut) or chicken thighs are preferred for this recipe.
- Vinegar - In Goa, toddy vinegar is traditionally used. I opted for rice vinegar, but white or red wine vinegar would also work well.
- Chilies - I have used Kashmiri dry red chilies. They are less spicy and give a bright red color to the vindaloo curry. If you don’t have them then substitute with Kashmiri red chili powder.
- Vindaloo Masala Spices - This recipe uses a specific blend of whole spices that forms the base of Vindaloo masala. If you don't have whole coriander seeds, ground coriander powder can be substituted. This recipe uses basic spices that are easily available in your kitchen.
How To Make Goan Chicken Vindaloo With Step By Step Photos
Prepare the Vindaloo Masala
- Deseed the Kashmiri red chilies to reduce the spiciness. Soak Kashmiri dry red chilies in hot water for 15 minutes. This softens them for easier grinding into a fine paste. If using Kashmiri red chili powder, skip this step.
2. In a mixer/grinder jar add Kashmir dry red chilies or red chili powder, garlic, ginger, cumin, cloves, cinnamon, pepper, coriander, mustard, vinegar, turmeric, and 2 tablespoon water. Grind the ingredients to a smooth thick paste. You can add more water, if required, to make the paste. Your homemade vindaloo masala is ready.
Marinate the Chicken
- In a mixing bowl, combine the chicken with salt and 4-5 tablespoons of vindaloo masala. Reserve the remaining vindaloo masala for later use. Marinate the chicken for at least 1 hour, or overnight in the refrigerator. Do not marinate for longer than 24 hours. Before cooking, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and let it sit on the kitchen counter to come to room temperature.
Making Goan Chicken Vindaloo
- Heat 3 tablespoon oil over medium heat in a steel pan/pot. Add onions and saute them until they're golden brown.
2. Reduce the heat to low. Add the remaining vindaloo masala from the mixer/grinder jar. Stir and cook the masala until it starts to release oil from the sides.
3. Add marinated chicken. Stir and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Keep stirring to prevent the masala from sticking to the pan. Scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a spatula.
4. Then, add ¼ cup of water to the blender jar, swirl to combine any remaining masala, and add the liquid to the pan.
5. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until the chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
6. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Taste and adjust more salt, sugar, and vinegar (or tamarind pulp) as per taste. I added 1 teaspoon sugar and 3 tablespoon vinegar. Your Goan Chicken Vindaloo is ready to serve. Serve it hot with Pav, bread slices, Naan, or Steamed Rice.
Tips To Make the Best Chicken Vindaloo
- Spice up your vindaloo (not too much): Fiery or mild? The key is to go slow with the heat in this spicy Goan chicken curry recipe. Start with a few Kashmiri red chilies in your Vindaloo paste. You can always add more later if you're feeling brave. This way, you can adjust the spice level.
- The same goes for the vinegar: Don't drench your meat in it at first. Marinate with a little, then taste your dish near the end. If it needs a tang, add a splash more then.
- Use a non-reactive pan for making vindaloo curry from discoloration or potential health concerns. This is because vindaloo contains vinegar, an acidic ingredient that can react with certain pan materials like aluminum or cast iron.
Recipe FAQs
The name "chicken vindaloo" can be confusing. Many people, including my husband, mistakenly believe it's a chicken curry with potato because of the word "aloo." This confusion comes from the Portuguese word "alhos," which means "garlic" and morphed into "aloo" in Hindi, the word for potato. As a result, some vindaloo recipes incorporate potatoes into vindaloo. However, the authentic Goan vindalho recipe does not include potatoes.
Vindaloo is much spicier and tangier compared to other popular curries like Chicken Tikka Masala or Indian Butter Chicken. The unique vinegar, chilies, and garlic-heavy masala make it stand out with its bold flavors. It's unique and you have to try making this once.
Yes, it is spicy but if you are making it at home you can control the spiciness. This recipe gives you a moderately spicy Goan chicken curry. Kashmiri red chilies are not too spicy which I used in this recipe. Deseed them to reduce the spiciness. Cut down the number of red chilies that go into the curry if you prefer a less spicy curry.
The Vindaloo Curry Variations
- Pork Vindaloo: The traditional Goan Vindaloo uses pork, which makes for a richer, heartier curry while other regions of India favor variations like chicken, lamb, and prawn vindaloo.
- Lamb Vindaloo: Swap chicken for lamb to enjoy a variation of this curry.
- Vegetarian Vindaloo: For a meatless option, try making this recipe with paneer, tofu, or potatoes. The vindaloo masala works beautifully with vegetables too.
If you try this easy chicken vindaloo recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. We'd love to hear your feedback.
For any questions or concerns while making this recipe, please get in touch with me directly at nayakprety@gmail.com. I'll try my best to respond promptly.
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Related Recipes
- Madras Chicken Curry
- Indian Restaurant Chicken Jalfrezi
- Chicken Pathia Recipe (Easy And Made From Scratch)
- Chicken Masala Recipe (Quick & Easy)
- Chicken Bhuna Masala | Bhuna Chicken | Chicken Bhuna Recipe
- Restaurant Style Chicken Curry | Indian Chicken Curry Recipe
- Restaurant-Style Chicken Tikka Masala
- Indian Butter Chicken Recipe
Recipe Card
Goan Chicken Vindaloo Recipe
Equipment
- 1 stainless steel pan or pot
- 1 Mixing bowl
Ingredients
For Vindaloo masala
- 15 Kashmir dry red chilies soaked in hot water for 15 minutes. or 2 tablespoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- 15-20 garlic cloves (small size, if using bigger ones 6-7 is enough)
- 1- inch ginger
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 8 cloves
- 1- inch cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns (Reduce to ½ teaspoon for a milder flavor)
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds or coriander powder
- ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds skip if not available
- ¼ cup rice wine vinegar (or use white wine vinegar, or red wine vinegar)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 2-4 tablespoon water (add more as required)
To marinate the chicken
- 800 grams chicken bone-in preferred
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4-5 tablespoon vindaloo masala
Other ingredients
- 3-4 tablespoon oil
- 2 cups of chopped onions 2 big onions, chopped
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2-3 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (add as per taste) or tamarind pulp
Instructions
Prepare Vindaloo masala
- Deseed the Kashmiri red chilies to reduce the spiciness. Soak Kashmiri dry red chilies in hot water for 15 minutes. This softens them for easier grinding into a fine paste. If using Kashmiri red chili powder, skip this step.
- In a mixer/grinder jar add Kashmir dry red chilies or red chili powder, garlic, ginger, cumin, cloves, cinnamon, pepper, coriander, mustard, vinegar, turmeric and 2 tablespoon water. Grind the ingredients to a smooth thick paste. You can add more water, if required, to make the paste. Your homemade vindaloo masala is ready.
Marinate the chicken
- In a mixing bowl, combine the chicken with salt and 4-5 tablespoons of vindaloo masala. Reserve the remaining vindaloo masala for later use. Marinate the chicken for at least 1 hour, or overnight in the refrigerator. Do not marinate for longer than 24 hours. Before cooking, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and let it sit on the kitchen counter to come to room temperature.
Making chicken vindaloo
- Heat 3 tablespoon oil over medium heat in a steel pan/pot.
- Add onions and sauté them until they're golden brown. Reduce the heat to low.
- Add the remaining vindaloo masala from the mixer/grinder jar. Stir and cook the masala until it starts to release oil from the sides.
- Add marinated chicken. Stir and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Keep stirring to prevent masala sticking to the pan. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a spatula.
- Then, add ¼ cup of water to the blender jar, swirl to combine any remaining masala, and add the liquid to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until the chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
- Add 1 teaspoon or sugar. Taste and adjust more salt, sugar, and vinegar (or tamarind pulp) as per taste. I added additional 1 teaspoon sugar and 3 tablespoon vinegar. Your chicken Vindaloo is ready to serve. Serve it hot with Pav, bread slices, Naan, or Roti.
Video
Notes
- Spice up your vindaloo (not too much): Making a vindaloo? Fiery or mild? The key is to go slow with the heat in this Vindaloo recipe. Start with a few Kashmiri red chilies in your Vindaloo paste. You can always add more later if you're feeling brave. This way, you can adjust the spice level.
- The same goes for the vinegar: Don't drench your meat in it at first. Marinate with a little, then taste your dish near the end. If it needs a tang, add a splash more then.
- Marinate the chicken for more succulent and flavorful meat.
- Use a non-reactive pan for making vindaloo curry from discoloration or potential health concerns. This is because vindaloo contains vinegar, an acidic ingredient that can react with certain pan materials like aluminum or cast iron.
- Be careful while adding water to the recipe. This is a semi-thick chicken curry; you should not add too much water at any cooking stage.
- For an even distribution of flavor and to prevent scorching, stir occasionally while the vindaloo simmers are covered.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Vaishnavi Nayak
Spicy, flavorful, and absolutely delicious dish. I love this chicken vindaloo, its super easy to make and tastes great.
Preeti
Thanks I am glad you liked it.