My absolute favourite way to eat pork is this Spicy Sri Lankan Black Pork Curry! Cooked with dark roasted curry powder, tamarind paste, and black pepper, this black pork curry is packed with big, robust flavours!
A good curry recipe is to boiled rice, what a lead guitar is to a rock band. One cannot exist without the other. And without a good curry, boiled rice is just that. Bland and boring.
Which is why a good meat curry is always a good thing to have in your arsenal. I’m not the biggest fan of pork by the way. I generally prefer a good chicken curry or beef curry or lamb curry (mutton curry) or a fish curry. Which is why, I prepare my pork dishes with extra flavour, texture, and spice that truly elevate the dish in every imaginable way.
Like this pork carnitas recipe, which is one of my favourite ways ever to eat pork! Same with this easy pork ramen, slow braised pork roast, habanero and peach BBQ pork ribs!, and devilled pork – a very Sri Lankan dish, the pork version of this spicy devilled beef recipe.
Spicy Sri Lankan Black Pork Curry
The name “black pork” comes from the colour of the final product, as you may have guessed. And that colour comes from the dark roasted curry powder that’s used to prepare this dish which is mixed with tamarind paste and black pepper.
I did add some cayenne pepper purely for Mr K’s benefit, because his threshold for heat is the same as that of a fire breathing dragon. But feel free to leave out the cayenne pepper for less heat.
As for the photos of the black pork in this post, I’m really not sure they do this dish any justice. There are some foods/dishes where photos just don’t convey how incredibly flavourful they are, no matter how much you twist and turn your body to get that perfect shot or perfect angle.
This was one of them. So just take my word for it. If you like a good meat curry, this will be a staple in your house.
Tamarind is a crucial addition to this recipe. I have made a variation of this curry using lemon juice instead, and while it’s still delicious, it’s just not the same thing. You should easily be able to find tamarind paste in your local Asian/Indian grocery store and even on Amazon.
Tamarind and another type of “fruit” called goraka are regularly used in Asian cooking. They both add distinct sour notes to curries and even a hint of sweet/fruity taste too. Tamarind is more popular as it’s used in numerous dishes and there are a few different types of tamarind too.
There’s one type called velvet tamarind, which I particularly like and is delicious. It’s something I used to snack on quite a lot when I was little, and I remember collecting the shell of this fruit because they had a really fun velvety skin (hence the name), and for a time I thought they used those shells to make velvet. True story.
And the best part about this spice mix is that you can use it for any type of meat curry – chicken, beef, lamb, whatever. See a full list of my curry recipes here to see all the meat and vegetarian curries that I’ve made using this incredibly versatile roasted curry powder.
You can get Sri Lankan roasted curry powder from Sri Lankan or Indian Specialty stores, or make it yourself with my easy Sri Lankan roasted curry powder recipe.
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Sri Lankan Black Pork Curry
Ingredients:
- 1.5 lb pork loin chops or shoulder – a pork cut with some fat is preferable for this curry
Marinade
- 4 tsp black pepper whole
- 6 cardamom pods seeds crushed (only the seeds)
- 1 heaped teaspoon of Sri Lankan Roasted Curry Powder recipe link available above
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper optional
- 3 tsp tamarind paste
Curry
- 2 jalapeno peppers sliced (or 2 serrano peppers if you prefer more heat)
- 1 inch of peeled ginger minced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ medium onion chopped finely
- 1 tbsp lemon juice optional
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp sugar
- More salt to taste
Instructions:
- Cut the pork into ½ – 1 inch cubes. If the pork chops have bones you can add those to the curry as well, as they add more flavour.
- Crush the cardamom pod seeds into a powder and mix it with the black pepper, curry powder, salt, cinnamon, cayenne pepper. Next, crush and mix all of this together using a mortar and pestle.
- Add 2 tbsp of this spice mix, the tamarind paste, and 1 tbsp oil to the cut pork and mix to coat. Leave to marinate for a few hours (up to 8 hours/overnight)
- The next day, bring the meat to room temperature before cooking.
- Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the bay leaves and ginger and onions, and saute till the onions become translucent. Add the garlic and sliced jalapeno peppers and saute for another 30 seconds.
- Add the marinated pork and sugar and stir to mix well. Add about ½ cup of water and bring this to a boil.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 1 hour. Check on the curry, and add extra water if it dries out.
- Taste and add more salt and some lemon juice – only if needed.
- You can serve this curry immediately, but it tastes better after it has rested for a little while. Even better the next day!
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
The reason why I love this curry so much is the balance of flavours. If you’d like to increase that beautiful peppery heat (and the colour), just add a little more black pepper.
The addition of tamarind paste give this curry a delicious sour note that complements the heat really well. And since it’s a meat curry, you can pair it with a number of side dishes like salads, vegetable curries, lentil curry etc.
Our favourite way to eat this however is with a side of coconut sambol (a traditional Sri Lankan dish) or green pepper coconut sambol (pictured below).
This is a curry we love eating no matter what protein we choose to make it with. Pork seems to work best though, because of the texture and the flavour of the meat. And it’s one of Mr K’s ultimate comfort foods.
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Renee says
This was Amazing! Loved the complex flavors. Daughter to the leftovers home and said they were even better as you said they would be. Lucky her. But am making it again & may even attempt the coconut sambal
Pamela Nash says
Loved all your recipes
Lanka Rathnayake says
I have tried many Sri Lankan pork recipes,but this is my favorite so far
Anu says
Perfect recipe. It’s so tasty. My family loved it so much
Anu says
A perfect recipe, super tasty . My family loved it. It’s in my daily menu now.
Arlette says
Hi, I’ve made this recipe 2-3 times now and the whole family (including kids!) love it! I was wondering, can the recipe be used for part slow cooking in the oven? If so, any idea on temperature and duration? Thanks.
Carmen Nelson says
Best recipes. Thanks!
Agrasena M Rajapaksa Yapa says
This is the type of recipe I’ve been looking for. Need to cook this for the week end for my daughter. I will try it and let you know.
Pv says
I really like the flavours! Very good with pork! A bit heavy on the cayenne pepper so it’s really spicy to me.
Dini says
Hi Pv
This is a spicy curry, that is heavy on black pepper! I’m glad that you liked the flavors.
And the cayenne pepper is also optional (as written in the recipe), for those who do like and can handle spicy curries.
Hope that helps!
Paula says
Sorry forgot to add the stars. Definitely 5!
Paula says
Lovely curry. The flavours were perfectly balanced. Thanks for the recipe.
Glenda says
I am just going to cook this curry when do I add the tamarind juice?
Also do I grind the pepper after I make the curry powder?
First time trying so just want to get it right.
Thanks
Dini says
Hi Glenda
As per the instructions, the black pepper is crushed in a mortar pestle with other spices.
The tamarind is also added to the pork marinade as per the recipe.
Hope that helps
David says
Hi, Dini:
Do you think this recipe would work ok with goat meat/mutton? What changes, of any would you make for goat? Thanks!
Dini says
Hi David
We have used this recipe to make wild boar, chicken, lamb and goat as well, and they all work really well!
Goat can take longer to become tender, so just keep an eye on the curry and cook it longer and top with liquids as needed.
I hope that helps!
Chris says
So, you don’t brown/seal the meat before cooking?
Dini says
Hi Chris
Meat is very rarely browned in curries, because there is no need to. Browning meat is mostly a western concept and grandmothers in Sri Lanka never had to do this with curries.
You are welcome to brown the meat if you prefer. But this is an authentic black curry recipe and they way my grandmother (and mother) made it.
Kirsten says
Unbelievably delicious! Super easy to make, my Sri Lankan partner’s eyes rolled into the back of his head when he tasted this, lol. 5 stars!!