The Goan community in India takes great pride in Goa sausage, or Goan chouriço as it’s sometimes called. Fatty bits of pork are cooked with spices and feni, a local country liquor, sort of like moonshine, obtained by the natural fermentation of the coconut tree’s sap or the cashew fruit. The mixture is stuffed into casings and left to cure for several days. This spicy sausage is sautéed with vegetables, stuffed into naans, and even used to flavor rice. Because it’s difficult to source Goa sausage or feni here, I developed a simpler recipe, which I make with coconut vinegar. If you can’t find it, use apple cider vinegar instead.–Nik Sharma
Goan-Style Chouriço
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 3 whole cloves
- 1 pound ground pork (preferably with as much fat as possible)
- 1/4 cup coconut or apple cider vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- One (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon Kashmiri chile powder*
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon jaggery or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Using a or spice grinder, finely grind the black peppercorns, cumin seeds, and cloves and dump into a large bowl.
- Add the remaining ingredients and mix with a fork or your hands to combine everything.
- Shape the mixture into a log, wrap with wax paper or parchment paper, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or preferably overnight to let the flavors meld. (It can be wrapped in plastic wrap and then stashed in a resealable plastic bag in the freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw before using.)
- Cut off pieces of the chouriço as needed. Cook in a skillet over medium-high heat until the internal temperature reaches 160°F (73°C) on an instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes.
Notes
*What can I substitute for Kashmiri chile powder?
Kashmiri chile powder isn’t particularly spicy, it’s used more for the color than for a hit of spicy heat. It has a mild, smoky flavor and is only slightly hotter than paprika. A good substitute is a combination of smoked paprika and cayenne. For this recipe, you’ll need 2 1/2 teaspoons of smoked paprika and 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne to equal 1 tablespoon of Kashmiri chile. You can use regular paprika if you don’t have the smoked kind but it will lack the smokiness.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
I’ve never had (or heard of) Goan-style chouriço before so this recipe was a great adventure of ingredients I had tried. I loved the coconut vinegar in this! It gave the sausage a mildly sweet and tangy flavor which balanced out the spice and was enhanced by the fresh lime juice.
I couldn’t find Kashmiri chile powder so I mainly relied on paprika, cayenne, and chipotle spices. I made two batches of the chouriço potato salad, so there wasn’t any of this left to experiment with in other dishes. It may be basic to compare a Portuguese sausage to Mexican food, however, the only other dishes I can think of using it in is tacos. The only issue I had with the chouriço is that it fell apart really quickly when I pan-fried it. I’m not sure if I would have had different results with the Kashmiri chile, but I was thinking of adding an egg to the recipe next time to hold the sausage together better.
I used this Goan-style chouriço in a potato salad recipe and will use the remainder to add to eggs. It has a nice spice!
I couldn’t find 1 pound of pork so I got 1.2 pounds. My total weight was close to 1.4 pounds of chouriço. I used apple cider vinegar. At first, I thought it was too much vinegar and I was afraid it would turn out too vinegary. But I guess it cooks out because I couldn’t taste any vinegar at all. I let mine rest overnight for at least 24 hours.
This Goan-style chouriço is an unexpected joy and something I never thought I could make at home. It comes together in minutes and just hangs out in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
I stored mine wrapped in wax paper in the fridge, with rubber bands around each end to keep the folded edges tucked in. I did find that the chouriço was a little on the wet side when I wrapped it to cure overnight, so I kept it on a plate just in case of leakage.
It packs so much flavor and was fantastic in the potato salad as well as into scrambled eggs the next morning.
