Chicken Mulligatawny

By: Deborah

Discover this easy chicken mulligatawny recipe – a warming, lightly spiced soup with chicken, rice, and vegetables. Perfect for a cosy lunch or hearty weeknight dinner, full of comforting curry flavours.

PREP: 20

COOK: 1 15

Slow Cooker on low: 3 30

TOTAL: 5 5

Course: Soup, Starter

Cuisine: Sri Lankan

Servings: 6 people

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Equipment

Ingredients

1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 large onion (approx. 150g to 200g) finely chopped
2 large carrots (approx. 250g to 300g) peeled and diced
2 celery stalks trimmed and diced
30 g (1.1 oz) fresh ginger peeled and finely grated
a pinch of salt
1.5 tbsp mild curry powder or 1 tbsp medium curry powder
0.5 tsp fine sea salt
2 bay leaves
320 g (11.3 oz) skinless boneless chicken thighs trimmed and halved
400 ml (13.5 oz) tin full-fat coconut milk
750 ml (3.2 cups) chicken stock (made using 1 stock cube or pot)
2 red-skinned eating apples (prepare at steps 4 and 6)
75 g (2.6 oz) basmati rice rinsed
juice of 1 lemon
salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the relish:

10 g (0.4 oz) coriander roughly chopped
1 spring onion finely sliced

Instructions

(see Notes)

Heat both oils in a flameproof casserole or large pan and add the onion, carrots, celery and ginger, plus a pinch of salt. Cover and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes or until soft but not coloured.
Add the curry powder, salt and bay leaves and stir for 1 minute to cook out the rawness. Turn the chicken thighs in the mixture to coat well.
Pour the coconut milk and stock into the pan, cover and bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and cook gently for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Lift the chicken out to a plate to cool.
Peel, core and finely chop 1.5 apples, add to the broth with the rice and bring back to the boil. Simmer, covered, for 10 to 15 minutes or until the rice is tender.
Meanwhile, shred the chicken with two forks. Stir back into the soup with half of the lemon juice. Adjust the seasoning to taste and discard the bay leaves. Heat gently for 2 to 3 minutes.
Core and finely shred the other half of the apple (leaving the skin on) and mix with the rest of the lemon juice, the coriander and spring onion.
Serve the mulligatawny topped with a spoonful of the apple-coriander relish.

Slow Cooker Instructions

Omit the oils, put all the soup ingredients apart from the rice, apple and lemon juice in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 2.5 hours. Then add the rice, stir to combine and cook on low for 30 minutes.
Shred the chicken, then return it to the slow cooker with the juice of half a lemon and 1.5 diced apples (prepared as per step 4 above), cook for 30 minutes. Adjust the seasoning to taste and discard the bay leaves. Serve with the relish (using half an apple and lemon juice as per step 6 above).

Notes

Make this chicken mulligatawny on the hob or in a slow cooker - see both Instructions below.
Optional variations:
- Spices - curry powder is classic, but you could add cumin, turmeric or garam masala for more depth.
- Vegetarian version - use red lentils or chickpeas and extra vegetables, and use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.
- Spicy version - add fresh chilli, cayenne pepper or extra curry powder.

Nutrition

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

KEYWORDS chicken curry soup, chicken mulligatawny, comfort food, creamy chicken soup recipe, easy curry soup, Indian-style soup recipe, mulligatawny soup, slow cooker soup recipe, winter warmer

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