Chicken Vindaloo My Way

We had an Indian potluck at work and I made this dish. Everyone loved it and there was not one drop left. Several people asked for the recipe so I decided to post it here. I used several different recipes (including Crock Pot Chicken Vindaloo ) and combined them to come up with what I thought would be a good, fairly easy Vindaloo recipe. I noticed a lot of Vindaloo recipes call for Cardamom but I didn't have it on hand and at $12 for a small bottle, didn’t use it. I am not sure what addition the cardamom would make, but if you have it on hand you could add about 1/4 teaspoon to the Garlic Red Chili Paste.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• Onions

• 2  tablespoons olive oil
• 3  medium onions (sliced into thin slivers)
• 3  tablespoons cider vinegar

• Garlic Red Chile Paste

• 6  garlic cloves (minced)
• 3  tablespoons fresh ginger (about 1-inch peeled and coarsely chopped)
• 3  tablespoons curry powder
• 4  tablespoons cumin
• 1  teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1  teaspoon clove (ground)
• 1  tablespoon ground mustard
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 2  tablespoons olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon
• 2  cups ketchup (I only use Heinz)
• 1  cup water

• Chicken

• 2  lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

• Rice and Garnish

•  basmati rice
•  chopped cilantro (optional)

Directions

1. Slice the onions into fairly thin slivers. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a dutch oven. When the oil is very hot, add the onions. Turn the stove down to a low heat, so the onions just gently sauté. After around 3 minutes they should be starting to caramelize. Gradually turn up the heat and keep stirring the onions. You want them to brown quite heavily without burning.
2. Add the vinegar, it will sizzle, and after a while will evaporate. Keep stirring. Fry for several more minutes, until the onions are very brown, but not burnt.
3. Put the onions (let as much oil as possible drip back into the pan) in a food processor with the ingredients for the Garlic Chili Paste and process until smooth.
4. Add a little more oil to the pan you used for the onion and add the chicken. Sauté the chicken for about 5 minutes.
5. Add the Garlic Chili paste and mix well. Stir the water into the gravy and stir until blended.
6. Cover the skillet simmer on for 40-45 minutes until the chicken is tender and ready to be served.
7. Garnish with cilantro (if desired) and serve with hot white Basmati rice.
8. ****Crock Pot Version***.
9. Cut the water back to 1 cup. After adding the water and stirring well, simmer for 10 minutes and then put in a crock pot, and cook on low for 4 hours.