As mentioned in Day 16 of The Challenge
I heard about this every year on New Year's Eve for years in The 90th Birthday or Dinner For One (do watch it if you have a minute, it is very entertaining), without ever knowing what it was. Then I tried it a couple of years ago and loved it and it has become a staple. It has a good mix of warm spice notes, and a good solid base. There are masses of different recipes out there for Mulligatawny Soup, which made it to Europe during the Raj and is thus a very tasty vestige of the British Empire and colonialism. I tried a number of different recipes and then tweaked to make one of my own. I hope you enjoy! Do leave comments :)
Ingredients:
1/4 c butter
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, diced
1 hot red pepper, diced
half a head of garlic, minced
2 tsp ginger, minced
2 apples diced
3 tomatoes, diced
1/2 tsp of paprika (or tandoori powder - I find it adds a richer flavour note)
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp of curry powder of your choice (I used a strong Moroccan one, but have also used an orange curry powder from a market in Munich)
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Black pepper to taste - I like to use a lot, but the choice is yours
1/2 c red lentils
2/3 c coconut milk
3 c of chicken broth
Roasted nuts to garnish (cashews are my favourite, but otherwise walnuts are very nice too)
Fresh coriander to garnish
1) Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté the onion, carrot, and pepper for a few minutes until the onion is translucent.
2) Add the garlic, ginger apples and tomatoes. Cook a further few minutes and then chuck in the spices and stir.
3) Add lentils and broth. Bring to a boil then simmer for about a half hour, until the lentils are cooked (red lentils cook quickly, so no need to soak them but you can if you want or if in doubt - over night will be super sure, but a few hours works too.)
4) Blend til about 75% of the soup is smooth, but with enough chunks remaining for texture, then add coconut milk.
5) Add toppings and serve. traditionally this would be with naan, but we've done it with tattie scones, flat bread or regular crusty bread. Any of these work.
There is a reason this has become a staple for us. I hope you enjoy it too. We had no James to dish it, but I'm glad I actually looked this one up :)
*Note: Don't worry about leftovers. It heats up fine, or you can make Miss Sophie's Soufflés! (Recipe coming very soon!)