Source: Los Angeles Times, September 18, 2002 Title: The Real Thing; For Indian curry with finesse and fire, look no farther than L.A. By: Barbara Hansen, Times Staff Writer. at http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-curry18sep18002046(0,4647280).sto ry?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dfood%2Dmanual
3,181 words. Excerpts: Los Angeles is a city proud of its spectacular range of ethnic foods and proud, too, that so much of it is authentic. When it comes to authenticity, however, a glaring exception is Indian curry. Oh, there are many dishes that are described as curry. But, trust us, they're just impostors… …Almost every restaurant slaps the word vindaloo onto a fiery dish that tastes nothing like it would in its place of origin, which is Goa, the former Portuguese enclave on the west coast of India. Goan food is particularly difficult to find here, so we sought out one of the few Goan chefs in the city, Addi Decosta, to explain how vindaloo should be made. For years, Decosta cooked his vinegar-seasoned curry at Chicken Madras in Hawthorne. (He has sold that place and will open a new restaurant, Addi's Tandoor, in Redondo Beach next month.) A Goan native, Decosta is scandalized by American vindaloos that reek of tomato sauce--a real no-no. Goan cooks of the past relied on vinegar as a preservative, because they didn't have refrigeration, he says. When tomato sauce is added, the vinegar has to be reduced to balance the acidity. This throws off the flavor. "Vindaloo is like a pickle, almost," Decosta says. "The longer you keep it, the better it tastes." Goan cooks stored their vindaloo in clay pots, reheating it as needed. The standing time also tenderizes tough meat. Pork is traditional in vindaloo, but today more Goan cooks are opting for lighter foods and have switched to shrimp. The difference is seafood has to be cooked and served immediately. It's not likely Goan food will become more common in Los Angeles, because Goan chefs are not immigrating here. "In Goa, they have many resorts, so they are all busy over there," Decosta says. "And they are very well paid." Those are the last words you'd use to describe the Chicken Mangalorean at Surya on West Third Street. It is a truly glorious dish. Even though it has never been put on the menu, everyone seems to know it's there. As a matter of fact, it's the second most popular dish after chicken tikka masala, says owner Sheel Joshi. "We have quite a few people who won't eat anything else, he says. Creamy, unctuous and just a little spicy, it is devastatingly addictive. Joshi devised the recipe, phoning to Mangalore on India's southwest coast for input. "It's a mix of north and south," he says. The classic northern seasonings--ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms--get together with southern coconut milk, curry leaves and mustard seeds. At first glance, one assumes the cook was not paying attention and burned the spices. But the black flecks in the golden sauce are deliberate. Fresh curry leaves, mustard seeds and red chiles cook in oil so hot that the curry leaves crackle and turn black instantly. The chiles also blacken. "They should burn--that really gives the flavor to the oil," Joshi says. The taste of curry leaves is hard to describe. Think of toned-down eucalyptus crossed with pepper, a flavor unlike anything in the gamut of herbs and spices that most Americans know. It is what gives this dish its cachet. Without curry leaves, the sauce would be pleasantly creamy, but not distinctive. No longer rare, curry leaves are sold fresh in many Indian markets. But they're not always available, and that's why chicken Mangalorean is not printed on the menu. Shrimp Vindaloo Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 45 minutes >From Addi Decosta, former owner of Chicken Madras in Hawthorne, now of Addi's Tandoor in Redondo Beach. 15 whole cloves, divided 1 teaspoon cumin seeds 2 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, divided 6 cloves garlic, divided 10 small dried red chiles, or more to taste 3/4 teaspoon turmeric 24 whole black peppercorns, divided 3/4 cup white vinegar 2 cups water 1 (1-inch) piece ginger root 1 tablespoon oil 2 large red onions, minced 1 boiling potato, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined 2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons sugar Place 9 cloves, the cumin seeds, 1 cinnamon stick, 3 garlic cloves, the chiles, turmeric, 18 peppercorns and the vinegar in a blender. Blend on high speed until as smooth as possible, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the water and blend just to combine. Set aside. Place the remaining garlic and the ginger in a small food processor along with about 1 tablespoon of water. Process until a paste is formed. Set aside. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the onions, remaining cloves, remaining cinnamon stick and remaining peppercorns. Cook, stirring often, until the onions have browned, about 15 minutes. Add the mixture from the blender, the ginger-garlic paste and the potato and continue to cook over high heat until the mixture thickens a bit and the potato is almost cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Add more water if the curry thickens too much. Add the shrimp, salt and sugar and cook another 5 minutes, stirring, until the shrimp are cooked through. 4 servings. Each serving: 256 calories; 1,510 mg sodium; 276 mg cholesterol; 6 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 21 grams carbohydrates; 32 grams protein; 3.54 grams fiber. Variation: Substitute 1 1/2 pounds boneless pork, cut into small cubes, for the shrimp. Prepare the sauce as for Shrimp Vindaloo, add the pork and cook over low heat 1 hour. Cool and refrigerate overnight. Reheat and serve. 4 servings. Don't forget - you saw it on GoaNet! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-W-E-B---S-I-T-E-=-=-= To Subscribe/Unsubscribe from GoaNet | http://www.goacom.com/goanet =================================================================== For (un)subscribing or for help, Contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dont want so many e=mails? Join GoaNet-Digest instead !
