A Dr. Haynes Favorite
I’ve been making this stew for 20 years and have forgotten the original source. I save it for entertaining and have even served it to the most discriminating foodies. It avoids the 3 most common food sensitivities – gluten, dairy, eggs.
Mulligatawny is an English soup with origins in Indian cuisine. Don’t be afraid of the long list of ingredients. It is so worth it. The almonds and banana garnish create a tropical taste and crunchy texture. Invite people over.
Makes 8 cups (but I usually double the recipe).
Ingredients:
- 6 TBSP butter (or substitute)
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 2 stalks celery with leaves, diced
- 1 green pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 apple, peeled and diced
- 1 pound of chicken breasts
- 1 can coconut milk
- 1 cup loosely packed finely shredded coconut
- 1 TBSP curry powder
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- 2 whole cloves, crushed, or ¼ tsp powder
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes (canned is fine)
- Salt to taste
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 cup toasted, sliced almonds for garnish
- 4 ice-cold bananas, sliced as garnish (optional)
- 3 – 4 cups hot cooked rice (if you want to serve the stew on top of a scoop)
Directions:
- Gently melt the butter (or substitute) over medium heat in a large soup pot.
- Add the onion, carrot, celery, green pepper and apple, and whole chicken breasts and simmer. Stir frequently, for about 15 minutes. Do not over brown. Add a little water if needed.
- Mix in the curry and nutmeg and cook an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the broth, cloves, tomatoes, coconut milk, shredded coconut, salt, and cayenne. Partially cover and simmer for 30 – 40 minutes.
- Pull out the chicken breasts out and let cool. Shred into bite size pieces removing any of those disgusting chewy bits. Return to pot. Taste and correct seasoning.
- You can serve on a mound of rice if you wish. Garnish with the toasted almonds. Pass the bananas separately.