Customer Rating: 
Summary: I love this stuff
Comment: When I began cooking for myself about 6 years ago, I tried five or six different recipes for chicken vindaloo, from Madhur Jaffrey's classic recipe to actor Anthony Hopkins' "healthful" one (which I found on some entertainment Web site).
Most were good, with Jaffrey's being the best of the bunch, Hopkins' the worst (Hannibal's take on vindaloo was surprisingly bland). None of the recipes were nearly as good, however, as the spiced-just-right vindaloo I used to order at least once a week from Baluchi's when I lived in New York City.
During my recipe experimentation, I visited a local Asian grocery store and asked the clerk for some advice. He recommended trying Patak's paste. I was dubious, but I did. It was absolutely great. And the bonus: The Patak's recipe is much easier to fix than the various recipes I had been collecting.
I've cooked with this paste so often now, I've learned to make a few alterations to the recipe. I basically follow the directions on the jar (substituting chicken for shrimp), but add a 1/4 cup of yogurt and about a tablespoon of fresh minced cilantro at the end of the cooking process. If I have some lemon juice around, I put in a couple of squirts just before serving. (I usually cook the dish with two to two-and-a-half pounds of chicken and freeze the leftovers. It reheats well.)
If you're using chicken breasts rather than dark meat, make sure not to overcook and dry out the chicken. That's about the only thing you'll need to guard against. (A friend told me to marinate the chicken bits in yogurt and then cook them under a broiler, separate from the sauce but adding them to the sauce once they're cooked through. He says this locks in the moistness and adds a little flavor to the meat via the slight charring/carmelization that results. I haven't tried it, but it sounds good.)
By the way, I'm not sure how healthy this paste is; don't overuse the paste or the dish can get a bit greasy, for example. (There must be a fair amount of oil in the paste.) Just use the amount recommended on the jar and you should be fine.
Patak's doesn't beat Baluchi's chicken vindaloo, but for a home cook looking to make fast and tasty vindaloos, this paste can't be beat.
Now if I could just learn to make a quick-and-easy naan, I'd really be in business...
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very Good - and very spicy!
Comment: While I am not Indian, I do cook Indian food from scratch quite often. I have taken lessons on and off for the past three years, and have gotten tips, recipes, and compliments from my Indian co-workers. This stuff is good - all the Patek sauces I've tried are - but be aware that this stuff is bloody hot (as Vindaloo should be)! Have some Cucumber Raita ready.
Customer Rating:
Summary: excellent and easy
Comment: I love Indian food. I own two Indian food cookbooks, but find the list of spices so daunting that I've never tried any of their recipes. I heard from a coworker that prepared Indian curry pastes were available at specialty stores, so I looked for them here at Amazon and was delighted to find Patak's curry pastes. The spice level is nice, for those of us who like our food hot and spicy, and you can always add more paste if you want more kick.
Here are the ingredients: Vegetable oil, cilantro, salt, tamarind, water, cumin, turmeric, chile pepper, ground ginger, garlic powder, maize flour, spices, acetic acid, citric acid, lactic acid.
And here is a basic recipe from the label:
Shrimp Vindaloo, serves 2
1 medium onion, diced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
8 oz. fresh shrimp, peeled (or any other meat)
3/4 cup water
4 tbsp Patak's hot vindaloo curry paste
1/2 cup diced canned tomatoes
hot, cooked rice
Saute onion in oil. Add shrimp and saute until pink. Stir in curry paste and cook about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and water. Simmer, uncovered until the shrimp is cooked, about 5 minutes. Serve over hot, cooked rice.
I tried it with beef (which you'd never be able to order at an Indian restaurant) and simmered for 25 minutes, and it turned out pretty well. Not exactly restaurant quality, but very good for a prepared paste. I now keep Patak's paste and some tomatoes on hand, in case I want to whip up a quick, spicy dish using leftover roast chicken or beef. I look forward to trying the other Patak's pastes.
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