Restaurant Style Beef Vindaloo–just like you get at your favorite Indian restaurant. It is easy and perfect for the slow cooker. Affiliate links were used in this post to link to items I am discussing.
This is definitely one of those dishes where staring at the photos weeks later, while I write this post, is making me seriously crave the dish. In this case, Restaurant Style Beef Vindaloo, a luscious, tangy, hot Indian curry from the Goa region. I don’t know if this tastes like what they would eat in India, especially because I did not get the recipe from an Indian cookbook, but rather Jennifer Newens’ Cooking with Spice: Easy Dishes From Around the World
, but I do know it tasted spot on–in the most delicious way possible–for what I order at the local Indian restaurant.
The cookbook I adapted from called for pork. It is my educated guess that lamb is probably the most commonly used meat for vindaloo. Having said all of that, any braising cut of meat (not poultry) will work well in this recipe (poultry would work but will need to be cooked for less time and will not be as luscious). The dish is spiced heavily enough that I honestly cannot tell the difference between the lamb I usually order and the more accessible beef that I made it with at home. So use what you can get, just make sure it is a good braising cut (chuck, brisket, pork shoulder, lamb shoulder, etc).
On a whim I added 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper to this recipe (I usually skip it completely)–the original recipe called for 1 1/2 teaspoons. And it was still too spicy for Alex, and even a tad spicy for me and Sammy! I guess we have turned into serious weenies around here (minus John of course). And Alex always was heat sensitive. But I think yogurt tastes fantastically with vindaloo, so I still loved the dish. Actually my kids did too, although Alex complained while she ate it with a lot of yogurt.
- 2½ - 3 lbs beef chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes
- 1 t sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1 t ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 4-5 T vegetable oil (my current favorite is avocado)
- 2 t brown or black mustard seeds
- 3 yellow onions, chopped
- 8-10 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 inch knob of fresh ginger, minced
- ½ t cayenne pepper, or more to heat tolerance
- 2 t paprika
- ½ t turmeric
- 2 t ground cumin
- 1½ t cinnamon
- pinch of ground cloves
- 2 t garam masala, divided
- ⅓ cup cider vinegar
- ½ cup water
- 1-3 t brown sugar, optional
- plain Greek yogurt for serving, optional (it's a great equalizer if the dish ends up too spicy for some of your diners)
- Basmati rice for serving
- Sprinkle 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper over the cubes beef. Massage it into the meat and then set it aside to rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat the oil in either a large skillet or a cooktop-safe slow cooker insert over medium high heat. Place some of the beef cubes into the pot in a single layer--do not crowd the pan, you can brown the beef in batches. Brown the cubes, about 8 minutes, before removing to the bowl and adding the next round. When you are done, place the beef in the bowl and set it aside.
- Add the mustard seeds to the pan. Ideally, they will pop before you add the onions, but if there is a lot of beef remnants stuck to the pan, do not let those burn. If you have time for the seeds to pop, cover the pan with a lid slightly ajar so the seeds do not pop out of the pan.
- When the popping has slowed--or when you are concerned the pan may scorch, add the onions with a pinch of salt. Stir, scraping up the bottom of the pan as the liquid from the onions deglazes the pan. If you have anything seriously stuck to the pan, splash a little water into the pan.
- Cook the onions for 15 minutes, until caramelizing. Keep a cup of water beside the cooktop to splash some in if the onions start to stick or scorch.
- When the onions are brown, add the garlic and ginger. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring.
- Add the remaining individual spices and one teaspoon only of the garam masala. Stir to roast the spices but do not let them burn, 1-2 minutes.
- Add the vinegar to the pan and scrape up any stuck bits.
- Either scrape everything, including the browned meat, into the slow cooker insert, or add the meat to cooktop safe slow cooker insert. Stir in the water.
- Place on the slow cooker base. Cover and cook for 4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low.
- Before serving, mix in the other teaspoon of garam masala. Taste for additional salt or even more garam masala. Taste for brown sugar (you are not looking for it to be sweet so much as smoothed out a bit).
- Serve with Basmati rice and some Greek yogurt for dolloping in case it is too spicy for anyone.
I wonder if I made it paneer, how it would turn out? I’m sure not exactly the same, but hopefully all that great spice would deepen the flavors regardless!
I was just wondering also when I saw you commented. It is really hard to sub for braised meat… I was wondering if mushrooms would be good. They have such a strong umami component… I am not a paneer fan though–it tastes like nothing to me. 🙂
G’day! This looks absolutely delish! I was wondering could I use some beef cheeks and if so, should I brown the beef cheefs before I put them in the slow cooker? Do I cut them into pieces or leave whole as they are about 6 inches by 3 inches and about 2 inches thick. Thanks you! Cheers! Joanne
Assuming that beef cheeks (which I have never eaten) are similar to hog jaw, it might be a lot fattier. If it is something you have braised with before and enjoyed though, I say why not. As to how to cut them, that is entirely up to you, but the recipe will take longer the larger you leave them. Good luck!
Spices makes it just adorable. Very delicious in taste.
Wow that looks like the perfect recipe to make for my boyfriend.. ohhh he will love this.. thank you for sharing.
Thanks! Let me know how he likes it!
Marvelous. Love these flavors. Need to locate the slow cooker. 🙂
Wow, I’m dying to try this amazing blend of spices Laura! It’s hard for me to find hormone-free beef in our area that isn’t a fortune. Are there any other meats or vegetables that you think would go well with this seasoning/sauce?
Pork for sure or lamb. Chicken would be ok, but much shorter cooking which in turn reduces some of the savory yumminess of the sauce.
Thank you!
Hi Laura,
I made this last night, but put it in the oven after adding the water and bringing to a boil. I kept it in the oven for a couple of hours. It was delicious! I added 1tsp of kashmiri chili powder and it was spicy, but not too spicy for us. Thanks for sharing this with us. Greta
Yay! Thanks for letting me know–and letting us know what you did differently for other readers.
This was the worst Beef Vindaloo I have ever eaten. The flavours just were not there. We couldn’t finish the meal so disappointing!!!
I am sorry to hear that was your experience–and surprised, since with that much spice and vinegar this dish definitely has flavor! Did you follow the recipe exactly or make any changes? I would love to help you troubleshoot what went wrong!
Turned out great!!!!!!!!!
Yay! Thanks for letting me know!
I love Indian food! I haven’t made it in the longest time because the kids didn’t like it when they were younger, but I think its time to try again. This looks delicious!
Absolutely delicious!! We have a very authentic Indian restaurant close by and are huge fans of all of their dishes but especially the pork vindaloo. I had a beef roast to cook and thought I’d give this a try. We LOVED it! I’m terrible at measuring and precisely following directions, so my version was lovely based on your version but it totally worked! The flavors were deep and well developed! This goes on our “regular” list as of today!!
I love these kinds of comments! Hooray! And thank you so much for stopping by to tell me!
I found this wonderful recipe and made it today. I used pork tenderloin and cut the garlic back to 4 cloves ( mind you they were large )
The flavour was incredible , we loved it !
Thanks
I love hearing that! Thanks for letting me know!
I AM FROM INDIAN HERITAGE AND I WOUL LIKE TO SAY THAT THIS RECIPE IS BETTER THAN MY OWN VILLAGE BACK AT HOME IN MUMBAI. THANKS FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO TASTE SOMETHING SO BEAUTIFUL I COULD EAT THIS FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE. THANK YOU AND GOODBYE
LOVE FROM THE BEEF VINDALOO EXPERT AND MASTER OF FOOD AND MASTER OF THE BIG KLEMMER AND HIS KIDDIES
A slow cooker book I’ve been reading says that you should always be sure that you have enough liquid to cover whatever ingredients you start with. I was a bit worried with this recipe when it came time to turn the crockpot on, because the half-cup water and third-cup vinegar don’t come anywhere near covering the meat (using lamb shoulder cutlets with bones in) and onions. I added about a cup and a half extra water to get the liquid level about even. After 4 hours, it now looks way too liquidy! I’m going to try thickening and maybe adding another dose of spices depending on how it tastes. Looks like I should have stuck to the recipe! Does this idea of always covering the ingredients hold any water (pardon the pun) with those of you who are experienced slow-cookers? I kind of assumed that too little liquid would damage the pot or burn the food or something.
Wow I have never heard that–if anything I read the opposite in my slow cooker’s instructions because the liquid is so tightly trapped in there. You could try removing the meat and then boiling the sauce down on the cooktop. I would be tempted to toss that book! So sorry that happened!
Hi, I would like to try this recipe but I don’t have a slow cooker, no turmeric nor mustard seeds neither. I got rump steak instead of the suggested cut of meat. I will try to use mustard sauce and put more of the other spices to make up for the missing ingredients. Wish me luck! Really craving for Indian food right now (salivating)
Wow!! I am so impressed by this recipe! I made it on the stovetop in a dutch oven on med low heat. I added a bit more water at one point, just so that it wouldn’t stick. The meat was SO TENDER and flavorful. I served this alongside chana masala and aloo gobi with naan and basmati. Everything was delicious, but the beef was a hit. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Awesome! Thanks for letting me know!
After seeing this yummy recipe and seeing all these awesome
Reviews I am going to give this vindaloo a try for the first time
Tonight. Love love curry
Thanks,
Serena