Name: Sri Lankan black pork curry
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 300g pork shoulder diced; 300g pork belly skin and bones removed, diced; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 onion finely diced; 7 curry leaves; 2 pandan leaves chopped; 3 cardamom pods; 1 small cinnamon stick; 1 lemongrass stick gently bruised; 1 clove; 8 green chillies half finely chopped, half finely sliced to garnish; 3 tbsp chilli powder; 1 tbsp tamarind paste; 1 tbsp roasted curry powder (we used Kolamba's roasted Sri Lankan curry powder); 2 tbsp coconut vinegar; 2 tbsp roasted curry powder; 5 garlic cloves finely sliced; 5cm piece of ginger finely chopped; 2 tsp ground black pepper; 1 tsp ground turmeric

Sri Lankan black pork curry in a bowl topped with red onions, coconut flakes and green chilli

300g pork shoulder
diced
300g pork belly
skin and bones removed, diced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion
finely diced
7 curry leaves
2 pandan leaves
chopped
3 cardamom pods
1 small cinnamon stick
1 lemongrass stick
gently bruised
1 clove
8 green chillies
half finely chopped, half finely sliced to garnish
3 tbsp chilli powder
1 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp roasted curry powder
(we used Kolamba's roasted Sri Lankan curry powder)

Marinade

2 tbsp coconut vinegar
2 tbsp roasted curry powder
5 garlic cloves
finely sliced
5cm piece of ginger
finely chopped
2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp ground turmeric

Method

step 1
Put the pork in a large bowl, add all the marinade ingredients plus 1 tsp of salt and toss together. Transfer to the fridge to marinate for 8 hrs or overnight.
step 2
Put the oil in a large frying pan over a low-medium heat. Gently fry the onion, curry leaves, pandan leaves, cardamom, cinnamon, lemongrass, clove and the finely chopped green chilies for 5 mins until fragrant and the onions have softened. Add the chilli powder and gently fry for a further 2 mins.
step 3
Add the marinated pork and marinade, along with 250ml of water and the tamarind paste. Bring to a brief boil, reduce the heat and cover, cooking for 15 mins over a low heat. Give the pork a good stir, making sure it isn’t sticking to the base of the pan, and cook for a further 10 mins or until the meat is tender. Uncover and cook for another 10 mins. If there is still a lot of gravy, increase the heat to reduce the liquid – the curry should be on the drier side.
step 4
Remove from the heat and sprinkle with the roasted curry powder, then keep the lid on for 10 mins to infuse. Serve with the sliced chillies.