Vindaloo is a curry inspired by the Portuguese settlers who introduced the chilli to India. The name comes from a combination of the words vinegar (vin) and aloo (alho is the Portuguese for garlic) and the curry itself is very hot due to the amount of chillies. If you do not like too much heat you can reduce the number of chillies. This is a tasty traditional recipe and can be very different to a restaurant Vindaloo which usually just refers to the heat level. We have made it with Vivera Veggie Steaks here but you can use any meat substitute.

1. If using dried chillies soak them in water to soften. Also soak the tamarind in a small amount of water if using pulp instead of paste.

2. Grind all the spices together with the chillies, garlic, ginger, vinegar and tamarind to make a smooth paste. Prick the Vegan steaks with a fork then rub a small amount of paste onto both sides, cover and put back in the fridge for 15 minutes. You can substitute the whole spices for ground if you do not have a spice grinder or pestle and mortar. Another good tip is to make a large batch of the spice paste and freeze in individual portions for use at a later date.

3. Heat the oil in a cooking pot and fry the onions for 10-15 minutes until brown taking care not to burn them.

4. Add the spice paste and fry for another 5 minutes, add some stock if you need to.

5. Add the chopped tomatoes if using (these are optional) and fry for a further 5 minutes.

6. Add the half the stock and bring to the boil, add the curry leaves then simmer for 10 minutes. Add further stock as required.