You will think you are in India when you taste this beef vindaloo. It's a dish full of complex flavors and spices. You can tame the heat by cutting back on the chilies. This beef dish will become one of your signature pieces and friends will want to know your secret, which is that you grind and roast all of by hand so they are fresh and piquant. You also make your own ghee. There is just no substitute for it in this recipe.
Instructions
1. Grind all of your spices to a fine powder. Toast them individually in a skillet to release the flavored oils. You will be adding them to taste, but if you grind 1 tbsp. of each, you will have more than enough.
2. Prepare by trimming the fat and making all of the cubes about 2 inches square.
3. Put garlic, grated ginger, onion and 1 tsp. of each of the ground and roasted spices into a blender. Add the vinegar and whirl them into a paste. Taste and see if you need more of anything. This should be hot, hot, hot and very spicy. You can't have too much spice, but if a flavor is missing or weak, add more a bit at a time until you are satisfied.
4. Mix the spicy paste with the beef cubes and refrigerate overnight in a covered bowl to develop the flavors.
5. Clarify your butter by putting it in a saucepan and bringing it to a simmer. White foam bubbles to the top and sediment sinks to the bottom. It takes about 20 minutes for the butter to clarify and turn a deep amber shade. Be careful not to burn the butter. Pour the butter through cheesecloth into a sterilized jar. Your ghee will keep in or out of the refrigerator for many months.
6. Fry your beef in ghee until it is a dark brown. Put the beef in a kettle and add beef, water and bay leaves. Simmer for several hours until the beef is falling apart tender. Your vindaloo is ready.
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