Mulligatawny Soup
- Total Time
- 50 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- ¼cup vegetable oil
- 1red or yellow onion, minced
- Salt
- 8garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
- 2tablespoons minced ginger (from about 2 inches of peeled ginger root)
- 2teaspoons black or brown mustard seeds
- 1teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1teaspoon curry powder
- ½teaspoon ground cayenne, plus more to taste
- ½teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2carrots, peeled and sliced
- 2celery stalks, sliced
- 1large apple, preferably Granny Smith, peeled, cored and chopped
- 2tablespoons tomato paste
- 3tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized chunks
- 1cup masoor dal (split red lentils)
- 6cups chicken broth or stock
- 1(14-ounce) can coconut milk
- Juice of 1 lime (about 1½ tablespoons)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
573 calories; 30 grams fat; 15 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 10 grams sugars; 32 grams protein; 1226 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Warm the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent and shrunken, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook, stirring, until fragrant and softened, about 2 minutes. Add the mustard seeds, turmeric, curry powder, cayenne and cumin seeds, and cook, stirring constantly, until the mustard seeds pop and sizzle, about 90 seconds. Add the carrot, celery and apple, and cook, stirring, until just starting to soften, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, then the flour, and cook, stirring well, to uniformly coat all the ingredients, about 2 minutes.
- Step 2
Add the chicken, masoor dal and chicken broth. Season lightly with salt. Bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up any browned bits sticking to the bottom of the pot. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer.
- Step 3
Cover the pot and cook for 10 minutes, then uncover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes more, until the chicken and carrots are tender, the soup is creamy, and the flavors have blended.
- Step 4
Stir in the coconut milk and squeeze in the lime juice. Serve in bowls topped with a dusting of cayenne, if desired.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
David
The Soup Nazi's best recipe, until Elaine ruined everything!
tikcuf
any suggestions on a vegetarian/vegan version of this?
Feroza
Here is a recipe from my friend Kavita Naik—a bit in Indian English In an utensil boil 3-4 whole tomatoes , boil 10-15 min, once cooked smashed them n strain to discard skins. Crush some garlic pods, cumin seeds, pepper corns Take a pot, add oil, once heated sautee mustard seeds, asofetida curry leaves, dried red chilled, turmeric and the above crushed garlic and cumins, pour the tomato sauce, heat, boil add, say 1/2 cup rice, and a mix or vegetables, until cooked, but keep spicy.
Joyce
I substitute tofu, large florets of cauliflower or baby potatoes for the chicken for a vegetarian version.
John
Brings back many wonderful memories of Jimmy's Kitchen in Hong Kong. More than just a tear in my eye just now.
Sarah
I want to be buried with a jar of this soup. I was like on an astral plane or something when I ate this. And I’m usually pretty bad at cooking soup. Yes the joy of cooking recipe is simpler but I felt the large number of ingredients paid off.
Graybits
I've been cooking Mulligatawny Soup following a similar recipe I got from a Chef in Mumbai. I decided to try this one and it was better! Two difference from this recipe: 1) I added cooked Chicken after I had cooked and blended the other ingredients; 2) I spiced it up with 2 tsp. of hot curry powder. It's now my go to Mulligatawny Soup.
Laprivan
Pop the Mustard and Cumin seeds first, then the onions. Later the seeds won't pop without burning the garlic. An put a lid on when the seeds pop or you will have a big mess!!
M Wickham
I made it just as the recipe asks and it is delicious. I don’t know how I would improve it other than maybe adding a little more chicken.
Matt
Great recipe! Rich and satisfying. The thickness was so nice that I only added the cream from the top of the coconut milk can and not the water. I think the soup is better after it rests for a bit. Next time I would finish cooking it, cover it, and let it rest for an hour before it’s served. I might add just a bit more of the curry powder and tomato paste, too.
Feroza
The Mulligtawny soup I’m familiar with has rice in it and not so thick. I have very fond memories of Mulligtawny. My mother used to take me to the Brindavan gardens where we’d stay at a hotel which was once the Magarajah’s palace, I think it is called the Orchid. They had the best version of this soup. I’ve experimented w many versions of it. It is my go to in sickness. My version is always vegetarian!
Brad
Brings back lovely memories of standing in line with Kramer, Jerry, Elaine, George and even Newman!
Jon
Not without changing a good amount. Red lentils will largely break apart and add thickness but nothing toothsome. French lentils would be undercooked if cooked as recipes states, and even if cooked well will still add a lot of texture that that would be absent with the red ones. Red lentils are pretty cheap if you have an asian/indian grocery nearby.
Rob
Lovely soup. Not sure if it's the real thing or not and don't care. Next time I make it, I'll add 5 cups of stock instead of 6.
TriciaPDX
Try not using any salt till you taste about halfway through cooking. Commercially made chicken stock will disclose the amount of salt on the package. Buy low sodium stock, be careful adding salt from the shaker and you will be fine. You have control over how much to use.
Laura S
Love this recipe but I always forget to pop my mustard seeds first, as a reader suggests. I wish the directions would reflect this, it's the third time I've missed it. Another change I make is adding the celery and apple at the end, just before the coconut milk, as I like them a bit crunchy.
Andrew
It's a very good base recipe but I would say it is WAY under-spiced. I'll definitely make this again but I'll probably double the spices and triple the cayenne.
bethany H
This soup was pretty delicious. I felt happy to serve it and it was loved. Here are the changes I made: I toasted the spices before adding onions. And I added almost twice as much curry powder. A bit more of every spice really. I also added two potatoes to give it more texture. And lastly I made a chonk to drizzle on the top and that was a GAME CHANGER! I’ll surely make this again.
MJ
Made this with cauliflower and potato instead of chicken, added extra of the spices, and half a can of coconut milk, and loved it. Enjoyed for days afterward with warm naan. Will be adding to my rotation :)
François
On my second attempt, since I dislike chicken thighs that are cooked this way, I used ground chicken that I cooked first and transferred to a plate before adding the onions, etc. I reduced the chicken stock to 5 cups, cut the coconut milk in half, and replaced the cayenne pepper with a teaspoon of Kashmiri chili powder (I will try a tablespoon next time). With the lime juice, I added a half-cup of chopped cilantro.
Joanne
I bloomed the spices in the oil before adding the onion. I used less cayenne and a lot more (Madras) curry powder, at least a tablespoon. I did not have split red lentils; I cooked regular red lentils in the soup for 15 minutes before adding the chicken, then cooked for another 30 minutes. I let the soup rest on low heat after that as suggested by one writer. I will make this again!
Rob
Made an excellent vegetarian version by replacing the chicken with one cubed sweet potato (added as directed for the chicken) and 6 oz of cubed paneer 2 minutes before the end of the final simmer. Also doubled the cayenne. It was excellent.
Rob
I made this vegetarian by replacing the chicken with a cubed peeled sweet potato. I added 6oz of paneer (also cubed) in the last 2 minutes of the simmer. Also upped the cayenne to a full teaspoon. It came out excellent!
Chris
Not sure how this compares with the Soup Nazi’s but super fantastic! Had 3 helpings the first time. The apple is such a nice unexpected surprise. Made pretty much as is but subbed mustard seed powder and used a can of chickpeas instead of chicken. Agree with others that spices except for cumin seeds could be boosted a bit. A keeper!
marie
Fantastic. Made vegan with cauliflower and tofu. Amazing flavors and so well balanced.
pdxdeacon
Made without lime juice (no limes) 1/25/24 and really liked it. Used raw tofu. Maybe more lentils next time?
emma
Such a great soup! Lots of ingredients but so worth it to build flavour. Love that it is dairy free.
Sara
Is the celery necessary? I don’t really cook with it otherwise so don’t wanna purchase if not needed.
Liz
I made the recipe as stated except for the following: I skipped the flour and used an emulsion blender to thicken. Instead of lentils, I used canned chickpeas and had to cut the chicken broth down to 4 cups, as the beans were already hydrated. Also used lamb chunks, not chicken and began the recipe by browning the lamb, removing from the pot and then returning with the broth to simmer.
sachcoops
vegan, made as more of curry than a soup per my preference! - subbed chicken for oyster mushrooms and tofu. next time would skip the tofu! - subbed red lentils for canned green lentils as that’s what i had - used about 3 cups of veggie broth and about half a can of coconut milk (mostly the cream bits) definitely make sure to salt as you go! it was delicious!
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