Soups & Stews

Serving

Mulligatawny Soup

Name: Mulligatawny Soup
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Soups & Stews
Ingredients: 2 tbsp butter; 1 yellow onion, diced; 2 carrots, diced; 2 celery stalks, diced; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 apple, peeled and diced; 2 tbsp curry powder; 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; 6 cups chicken broth; 2 cups shredded cooked chicken; 1 cup coconut milk; 1/2 cup cooked rice; salt and black pepper, to taste; chopped cilantro, for garnish

A creamy, curry-spiced Anglo-Indian soup with chicken, apple, and rice.

50 minutes

Serves 6

Dinner

18 min prep

28 min cook

Contains common allergens

celery Dairy Wheat

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Good to know

One-pot

Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: one-pot dinners

Instructions

6 steps

1
Melt butter in a large pot and sauté onion, carrots, and celery until softened, about 6 minutes.
2
Add garlic, apple, and curry powder and cook 2 minutes until fragrant.
3
Sprinkle in flour and stir to coat, cooking 1 minute.
4
Gradually whisk in chicken broth until smooth and bring to a simmer for 15 minutes.
5
Stir in shredded chicken, coconut milk, and cooked rice, and simmer 10 minutes more.
6
Season with salt and pepper and garnish with cilantro before serving.

Mulligatawny Soup — plated and served — Serving moment. How Mulligatawny Soup looks plated and ready to eat — a representative photo, not a step in the recipe.

Listahan Family Score™

72/100

Good fit for most families

Allergen-friendly 70

Kid-friendly 85

Weeknight-easy 62

Budget-friendly 78

Great leftovers 93

Pantry-friendly 38

Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.

Nutrition

per serving

385

Calories

21 g

Protein

31 g

Carbs

22 g

Fat

Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.

Listahan cooking guide

Chef notes & practical guide

Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.

Cultural context

Mulligatawny grew out of British colonial-era adaptations of South Indian peppery broths, with the name often traced to Tamil words for pepper water. Over time it became an Anglo-Indian soup: thicker, gentler, and often padded with chicken, rice, fruit, and a creamy finish for a Western-style bowl.

Listahan note

This version keeps the soup weeknight-friendly by using cooked chicken and cooked rice, then builds depth from the vegetables, apple, curry powder, and a quick butter-flour base. The goal is a creamy soup that still tastes bright and savory, not heavy.

Technique cues

Cook the onion, carrots, and celery until softened before adding the curry powder. That short head start gives the soup a sweeter, rounder base.
Stir the flour into the vegetables and butter before adding broth. Coating it well helps prevent clumps and gives the broth a smooth body.
Add the coconut milk near the end and keep the simmer gentle. A hard boil can make the finish taste flat and can thicken the rice too quickly.

Kitchen flow

Parallel prep: Dice the apple and mince the garlic while the onion, carrots, and celery soften in the pot.
Make-ahead: Cook the soup through the broth simmer, then add the chicken, coconut milk, and rice when reheating so the texture stays fresher.
Leftover move: Thin leftover soup with extra broth and serve it over a scoop of fresh rice for a fast lunch bowl.
Cleanup rhythm: Rinse the whisk and measuring cup right after the broth goes in; the pot can soak while the soup is being served.

Ingredient brief

Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.

Butter

Roux fat

Purpose: Butter carries the curry powder's aroma and combines with flour to give the soup its creamy structure.

Handling: Melt it fully before adding the diced vegetables so they coat evenly.

Adaptation: Neutral oil works, but the soup will lose some of the rounded dairy richness.

Yellow onion, carrots, and celery

Vegetable base

Purpose: This trio gives the soup sweetness, body, and a familiar North American soup foundation.

Handling: Dice them small enough to soften in the first few minutes of cooking.

Adaptation: Leek can stand in for some of the onion, and parsnip can replace part of the carrot for a more earthy sweetness.

Apple

Sweet-tart accent

Purpose: Apple softens into the broth and echoes the sweet-savory Anglo-Indian style of the soup.

Handling: Peel and dice it small so it melts into the texture rather than staying chunky.

Adaptation: A pear gives a softer sweetness, while skipping the fruit makes the soup more straightforwardly savory.

Curry powder

Spice blend

Purpose: It gives the soup its warm, recognizable curry-spiced profile without needing a long spice list.

Handling: Cook it briefly with the garlic and apple so it blooms in the butter before the broth goes in.

Adaptation: A mild curry powder keeps the soup gentle; a hotter blend will shift the bowl toward sharper heat.

All-purpose flour

Thickener

Purpose: Flour turns the broth into a lightly creamy soup instead of a thin spiced stock.

Handling: Sprinkle it evenly over the vegetables and stir for a full minute to cook off the raw taste.

Adaptation: A cornstarch slurry can thicken the soup later in the simmer, but it gives a glossier texture than flour.

Shredded cooked chicken, coconut milk, and cooked rice

Main body

Purpose: Chicken makes the soup filling, coconut milk rounds the spices, and rice gives each spoonful a soft, comforting texture.

Handling: Add them after the broth has simmered so the chicken stays tender and the rice does not over-expand.

Adaptation: Diced cooked turkey works in place of chicken, and cream can replace coconut milk for a richer, less coconut-forward finish.

Technique notes

Add the broth gradually at first and whisk after each splash. Once the flour base loosens, the rest of the broth can go in more quickly.
Taste after the coconut milk is added, not before. Coconut milk softens salt and spice, so seasoning too early can lead to a dull final bowl.
Keep an eye on the rice during the last simmer. If it thickens the soup more than you want, loosen it with a little extra broth.

Ingredient swaps

Flour-thickener swap: Skip the all-purpose flour and thicken near the end with a cornstarch slurry; the soup will be a little glossier and less roux-like.
Cooked chicken shortcut: Use leftover roasted chicken or plain shredded rotisserie chicken, adding it only long enough to warm through.
Creamier finish: Use more coconut milk and slightly less broth if you want a softer, richer soup with a more pronounced coconut note.
Rice control: Keep the cooked rice separate until serving if you prefer a looser broth or expect leftovers.

Serve alongside

Warm naan
Cucumber raita
Mango chutney toast
Lemon-cilantro basmati rice
Iced black tea with lemon
Mango lassi
Sparkling lime water

Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.

Storage & reheating

Refrigerate in a sealed container after cooling; the rice will keep absorbing broth as it rests.
Reheat gently on the stovetop with a splash of chicken broth or water to loosen the texture.
Freeze without the rice when possible, then thaw and add fresh cooked rice during reheating.

Equipment

Large heavy pot
Wooden spoon
Whisk
Ladle

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