Chicken vindaloo is a popular Indian curry known for its spicy and tangy flavor combination, a quick and easy kitchen staple. My version is wonderfully fiery, though you can easily adjust the heat and spice to your preference.
Chicken Vindaloo Recipe
If you are a spicy food lover like I am, you need to give your taste buds a treat and try this amazing Chicken Vindaloo Recipe. It has everything a fiery food lover could want - Flavor, Heat, Spiciness, Pure Satisfaction.
It is most definitely one of my favorite recipes and it is super easy to whip together in the kitchen with very little effort and cooking time.
That's a HUGE PLUS for a slow cook like me!
What is Vindaloo?
"Vindaloo" is a highly spiced curry dish that originated in the Goa region of India. It is known for its fiery and tangy flavors, and is often made with meat, typically pork, beef, goat, or chicken, marinated in a spiced vinegar-based sauce. You can also make it with potato for a vegetarian version.
The word "vindaloo" comes from the Portuguese dish "carne de vinha d'alhos," a dish of meat marinated in wine vinegar and garlic. Historically, when the Portuguese colonized Goa, they brought this dish with them, which was adapted to local Indian ingredients and flavors to create Goan vindaloo.
The dish is known for its intense heat, which comes from the use of red chilies, and pleasant tanginess from vinegar.
I love it with chicken, particularly chicken thighs, which I've included here for this recipe.
Let's talk about how to make Chicken Vindaloo, shall we?
Chicken Vindaloo Ingredients
The full list of ingredients with measurements and printable cooking instructions are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Chicken. Use chicken thighs or chicken breast, or a combination.
- Olive Oil. For cooking.
- Onion.
- Serrano Peppers. Or use Indian peppers, like Kashmiri chilies.
- Tomato Paste. You can also use fresh tomatoes.
- Salt and Pepper. To taste.
- FOR THE VINDALOO MARINADE
- White Vinegar.
- Garlic and Ginger.
- Spicy Red Chili Flakes. I enjoy using ghost pepper flakes for some extra heat, though you can use dried red chilies or flakes to your heat preference.
- Other Spices. Paprika, coriander, turmeric, mustard powder, cumin cinnamon. Freshly ground coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and mustard seeds make for extra fresh flavor.
- For Serving. Cooked rice, fresh herbs, extra chili flakes.
How to Make Chicken Vindaloo - Recipe Method
Marinate the Chicken. The vindaloo marinade is the most important part of this dish, as it imparts an immense amount of flavor that all of us spicy food lovers crave.
Vinegar is a MUST, as is garlic. From there, we're adding in a number of pungent spices to make this amazing, including paprika, ginger, coriander, turmeric, mustard powder, cumin, cinnamon, and a healthy dose of spicy red chili flakes, and salt and pepper, of course.
Try this Homemade Vindaloo Seasoning Blend.
You can also include a bit of sugar if you'd like, either white or brown sugar. I didn't use them this time.
Whisk all of the seasonings together with the vinegar, then pour it over the skinless chicken in a bowl. Or, use a plastic bag that you can seal. This is your curry paste. The chicken should be cut into bite sized pieces.
Refrigerate the chicken for at least 1 hour, though you'll get better results if you let it marinate overnight.
More marinade time = more flavor.
Cook the Onion and Peppers. Heat the oil in a large skillet to medium heat.
Next, cook your onion and chili pepper a few minutes to soften them up. I used spicy serrano peppers here, though you can use milder peppers for a version with less heat.
Cook the Chicken. Next, add the chicken (along with the marinade) and stir. Cook it for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Next, add in the tomato paste, salt, and pepper, and cook stirring a bit, along with about 1/2 cup of water or chicken broth to form a sauce. Fresh diced tomatoes are also a nice addition here.
Simmer the Vindaloo. Reduce the heat an let the whole pan simmer for 15 minutes to 20 minutes, until the chicken cooks through and the flavors develop. You can let it simmer longer if you'd like.
If the vindaloo sauce becomes too thick, just stir in a bit more water or broth until it reaches the consistency you prefer. It will thicken in the pan. It should be the consistency of a good gravy.
BOOM! DONE! Your chicken vindaloo curry is ready to serve! Better than any Indian restaurant. It's so deliciously fragrant. I love it. Such a great recipe. Indian food is filled with so much amazing spice and flavor.
Recipe Tips & Notes
Marinate Ahead
I like to whip this recipe together the night before and let it sit in the refrigerator until dinner time the next evening. It makes for a super quick and easy meal, though yeah, it does require a little bit of forethought.
Heat and Spice Factor
For the wild chiliheads like ME, you can use ghost pepper chili flakes like I did. If ghost peppers are too hot for you, use the typical red chili flakes or cayenne pepper that you find in the store, which are perfectly GREAT for this recipe.
You'll definitely get plenty of heat with them, and I want this dish to please your personal palate, not mine! So go with a heat level you're comfortable with.
Serving Chicken Vindaloo
Serve chicken vindaloo over steamed rice and garnish with fresh herbs and extra spicy chili flakes. Basmati rice is a nice choice, as is a side of naan bread.
If it is too spicy, serve it alongside this Indian Raita recipe, which is made from spiced yogurt. It has a nice cooling effect.
Storage and Leftovers
Chicken vindaloo will last up to 5 days in the refrigerator in a sealed container. To enjoy it again, simply warm it in a pot on the stove over gentle heat. Or, warm it in the microwave.
You can also freeze it for 3 months in vacuum sealed bags or freezer containers.
It really is an amazing dish. Give it a try and let me know how you like this curry recipe. How spicy did you make yours? Send pics! I'd love to see them. Till next time!!! -- Mike H.
Try Some of My Popular Curry Dish Recipes
- Lamb Vindaloo
- Ghost Pepper Chicken Curry
- Chicken Biryani
- Spicy Thai Curry Chicken Soup
- Homemade Vindaloo Curry Powder
- Khao Soi - Northern Thai Coconut Curry Soup
- Chicken Korma
- Phaal Curry (the Hottest Curry in the World)
- Massaman Curry
- Rogan Josh (Indian Lamb Curry)
- Pav Bhaji (Spicy Vegetable Curry)
Try Some of My Other Popular Chicken Dishes
If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #ChiliPepperMadness on Instagram so we can take a look. I always love to see all of your spicy inspirations.
Chicken Vindaloo Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken thighs chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 2 serrano peppers chopped (or use Indian peppers if you can obtain them)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- Salt and pepper to taste
FOR THE MARINADE
- ½ cup white vinegar
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon spicy red chili flakes I used ghost pepper flakes for an EXTRA kick
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
FOR SERVING: Cooked rice, fresh herbs, extra chili flakes
Instructions
- Add the chicken to a large bowl.
- Mix your marinade by whisking together the vinegar and all of the seasonings. Pour it over the chicken and rub it into the meat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Longer is better, such as overnight.
- Heat a large pan to medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the onion and peppers and cook about 4-5 minutes, until they soften up.
- Add the chicken along with the marinade and cook another 5 minutes to nicely brown up the pieces.
- Add the tomato paste and salt and pepper to taste. Cook another minute, stirring.
- Add ½ cup of water (or chicken broth for extra flavor) and stir until the mixture thins out and becomes a sauce. You can add more water if needed. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Serve as is or over rice with fresh herbs and sprinkled chili flakes. Make it rain!
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
This recipe is gluten free.
NOTE: This recipe was updated on 4/21/23 to include new information, photos, and video. It was originally published on 4/20/18.
Kevin says
This was $@&!ing amazing. Oh my god!!!!
So full of flavour. I did a few tweaks. I love the spice rub so I did 1 1/2 times all the spices to same amount of vinegar.
Didn’t have a Serrano so used 2 habaneros with the onion. And I liked adding a little chopped tomato.
This was just so hot but so delicious. The heat is the perfect amount.
Thanks again. Now I have to go dry off all the sweat.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Nice! You surely love to bring the heat, Kevin. I love it.
Stacy says
Great recipe! Full of flavor and perfect amount of heat!! Shared with friends and family.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Stacy!
Shannon says
Will try this again but...er merrr gerssh.....ghost pepper flakes! My husband and I adore hot, spicy food and vindaloo but were new to using ghost pepper flakes. I read the recipe a few times and asked him to check my ingredients, re-reading the 2 TBSP of pepper flakes (using ghost pepper flakes) a few times. All I can say is...ouch!
Even if you think you LOVE spicy, seriously watch out if using ghost pepper flakes...like maybe 1/4 what it calls for. GIRL, you gots to be crazy if you can handle that much 🙂
All in all a great dish but just watch out the heat
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Glad you enjoyed it overall, Shannon. The recipe calls for red pepper flakes, which aren't as hot as ghost. Only use ghost if know the heat! That's for sure. Vindaloo is usually spicy. I just like things a bit extra spicy than most.
Janet Allgeier says
I have a question about the vinegar. All I have is apple cider vinegar. Would that work?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
That will work, Janet. Let me know how it goes for you.
Ron McDuffie says
I made this last night. Followed recipe to the T. It turned out more greenish-yellow than red. It was good and will try it again. Next time I will just add more tomato paste and use red habaneros instead of serranos.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Ron.
John Gonzales says
Made this the first time a couple of months ago, since then it is on our monthly meal rotation. So delicious! Have made it for friends and family and it's always a hit! I make 2 batches, one hot, one not, for family that can't take the heat. We also add diced potatoes . Thank you for the recipe!!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome! Thanks, John!
Jeremy says
Made this for the first time tonight. My body doesn’t bode well with super spicy food these days, so I made a few changes to tone down the heat a bit. I used jalapeños in place of the serranos, and New Mexico Chile flakes instead of the spicy red pepper flakes. It went well over Basmati rice and a side of roasted sweet potatoes. So freakin delicious! I’ll definitely be making this again.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, Jeremy! Glad you enjoyed it! Very nice.
Bobbi says
Dang! I made your chicken vindaloo for my husband and son (I’m a vegetarian), and they said it was the BEST EVER!
A tad hard on the sinuses during prep, but so worth it!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Outstanding! Super happy he enjoyed it, Bobbi! Nice.
Peter says
Hi Michael, this looks really tasty. Can you replace the chicken with shrimps?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Peter. Yes, this would be good with shrimp, but you only need a few minutes to cook the shrimp in the sauce at the end before serving. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Brooks Reeves says
So I just made this for my dads birthday who loves vindaloo. I was a little worried it might be too spicy but I found it to be perfect. Extremely flavorful and besides the prep work, also super easy. I thought I was going to have decent amount of leftovers given how much of it I made but the two of us polished off the whole batch. Thanks so much for posting this. Much better than the last recipe I used for veggie korma on a different website.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, Brooks! Glad you both enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing.
mian bilal says
Thanks Michael for sharing i just came here from Pinterest and thins is just amazing..thanks for sharing
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Mian!
Tom says
Hey Mike, I have made this recipe twice now and it has been excellent every time! I had tried to make Chicken Vindaloo a few times in the past but none of the other recipes I tried really worked out. This one however is nearly perfect. Your recipe has all of the flavors of a traditional vindaloo and I love the amount of kick your recipe provides. Both times I have made this I followed your recipe to the letter and the end result was fantastic. I especially love the fact that you can marinade the chicken for as long as you want and then toss it in the pan when you are ready to eat. And I had never used serrano peppers before but after this recipe I will be adding them to my regular pepper rotation.
Thanks for the recipe and keep them coming!
Cheers,
Tom
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Tom. I appreciate it. This is definitely a favorite on the site. Big hit!