This fragrant Indian Mulligatawny Soup recipe is spiced with curry and made from creamy red lentils, carrots, apples, and coconut milk. It is ready in an hour, with only 15 minutes of real work! Make a double batch and freeze the leftovers!
I love how the flavors in this Mulligatawny Soup meld together to create a bowl that’s both comforting and exotic. The spiciness of the red jalapeño is perfectly tempered by the creaminess of the coconut milk, making each bite a delightful experience.
I can’t get enough of the way the sweet apples and earthy lentils come together, making this dish irresistibly satisfying. For another lentil soup that is satisfying, give my Vegan Bavarian Lentil Soup a try.
Table of Contents
Recipe Ingredients
The base of this Mulligatawny Soup is creamy red lentils. I love the texture and subtle earthiness the lentils bring to the dish, and if you are a lentil lover like me, check out my Mujaddara: Spiced Lentils, Rice and Onions.
Carrots, apples, and onions bring in a mix of sweetness and depth, while the red jalapeño adds a pleasant kick. A medley of aromatic spices—curry powder, cumin, paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, and cardamom—infuse the soup with warmth and complexity.
You will love how the addition of coconut milk elevates the dish to a creamy, luxurious level that balances out the spices and heat.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
Dairy-Free: The recipe calls for butter, but you can easily substitute this with vegetable oil to make it dairy-free.
Vegan: To make this recipe vegan, you’ll need to do two things. First, replace the butter with vegetable oil. Second, use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. If you like vegan recipes, check out these Vegan Blueberry Muffins.
How to Make Mulligatawny Soup
Step #1: Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and jalapeno, then sauté for 4 to 5 minutes or until the onions have softened.
Step #2: Add the garlic, ginger, apples, and diced tomatoes to the pot. Sauté for another 3 minutes. Then add in all of the spices and toss to coat.
Step #3: Add in the lentils and broth and let the contents come to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
Step #4: Puree about 75% of the ingredients using either an immersion blender after transferring a portion of the contents to a bowl to not be pureed. If you don’t have an immersion blender, then you can transfer a portion of the contents a standard blender. Leaving some of the chunks whole adds a nice texture and consistency to the soup.
Step #5: Return the soup to the pot if needed. Then stir in the coconut milk. Taste, and adjust salt and black pepper as needed.
Step #6: Serve topped with cashew and scallions along with homemade naan bread for dipping.
Frequently Asked Questions
“Mulligatawny” is derived from Tamil words that roughly translate to “pepper water.” The soup is an Anglo-Indian invention and was originally a thin, spicy broth.
Yes, you can use green apples, like granny smith apples, but they will give a tarter flavor compared to the sweetness of red apples.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, simply transfer the cooled Mulligatawny Soup into an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It will keep well for up to 4-5 days.
To freeze the soup, let it cool down to room temperature first. Then portion it into freezer-safe containers or heavy-duty zip-top bags, leaving some space at the top for expansion. Seal tightly and store it in the freezer, where it will keep for up to 2-3 months for best quality.
To reheat the soup, simply pour the thawed soup into a pot and warm it over medium heat on the stovetop, stirring occasionally, until it reaches your desired temperature. If you’re using the microwave, place the soup in a microwave-safe container and heat in 30-second increments, stirring between each, until warm.
More Delicious Recipes to Check Out
Indian Mulligatawny Soup Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter - or vegetable oil for vegan
- 1 yellow onion - chopped
- 1 carrot - peeled and diced
- 1 red jalapeno - seeded and diced
- 3 garlic cloves - minced
- 2 teaspoons peeled and minced ginger root
- 2 small firm apples - peeled, cored and diced
- 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 cup red lentils - uncooked
- 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 2/3 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Roasted cashews for garnish
- Chopped cilantro and/or scallions for garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and jalapeno, then saute for 4 to 5 minutes or until the onions have softened.
- Add the garlic, ginger, apples, and diced tomatoes to the pot. Saute for another 3 minutes. Then add in all of the spices and toss to coat.
- Add in the lentils and broth and let the contents come to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
- Puree about 75% of the ingredients using either an immersion blender or by transferring a portion of the contents to the bowl of a standard blender. Leave some of the chunks whole, as it adds a nice texture and consistency to the soup.
- Return the soup to the pot if needed, then stir in the coconut milk. Taste, and adjust salt and black pepper as needed.
- Serve topped with cashew and scallions along with naan bread for dipping.
VIDEO
NOTES
Nutrition
Please note that sometimes this recipe is misspelled as: Indian Muligatawny Soup recipe, Indian Muligatawny Soup recipe or Indian Mulagatani Soup recipe.
This recipe is quite possibly the best thing I’ve ever cooked. It also may be one of the best things I’ve ever eaten, period.
I eat exclusively plant-based home cooking and am always on the lookout for new recipes to try. This one is an instant favorite. I made it with about one-third less broth than called for to make it thicker and more of a stew, and subbed one tablespoon of olive oil for the butter. I felt like it definitely didn’t need so much oil. Served it with a squeeze of lime over wilted spinach and bulgar to get my grains and greens it. It turned out AMAZING.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. Shamefully, this is is the first time I’ve ever bothered to leave a review for a recipe. This one really deserves it!
Hi Trish,
Thank you for leaving this review and for sharing your changes to this recipe!
– Linda
I agree with Trish. The first time I made this soup – I have made it several times now – it was the best thing I had ever cooked or eaten. Somehow I can never quite live up to that first time but it’s still amazing everything – maybe I’m chasing the dragon- either way thank you so much for this recipe.
I can’t tell how old this recipe is so not sure if this comment will get lost. It looks amazing! I’d like to make this for my family but my son is spice-averse. Can I make it sans-jalapeño and then add some red pepper flakes at the end to a portion of the recipe, or will that completely change the flavor?
Hi Devon,
Sure, make it your own, it will be fine to do it as you suggest.
– Linda
I made the stop, tasty, but as in most Indian recipes, I believe the spices should go in the the onions. The spices seem rather raw to me, need more. The colour is different, as I added a cup or so of Butter Chicken sauce that I had made earlier. Great recipe, but I will toast spices in the future. Lila Gattinger
Spunds good, but it why is it always assumed you have a blender ? Many people do not !
I don’t bother to put mint through the blender. The soup has already cooked down and I/we enjoy the texture of it as it is.
Needs meat, added chicken like traditional recipe has. Much better. It was like it was practicing to one day grow up and be mulligatawny. Chicken and some Kashmiri chilli and it was all grown up!
tasted pretty good, but I only had Madras curry powder. That is a lot more more spicy than regular curry powder. In hindsight you should use at most a half tablespoon. I used 2/3 tablespoon. I also added lemon to it which enhanced the flavor. I don’t think the apples are necessary, couldn’t really taste any hint of them? Maybe just adding more carrot would be better?
Thank you for your wonderful recipe! I am a very strict sodium diet (500mgs a day) so I can’t dine or order out, or even buy processed foods. This is such a wonderful and healthy soup and all I have to do is substitute sodium free stock in and it is wonderful! One warning is that sometimes we buy jalapeños and they are as hot as a bell pepper and once in a while it lights my lips on fire. So I often will use ground cayenne and add pinches until I get to my heat level. I usually save the jalapeños to be added raw to burritos/tacos/chili after I have tested their hotness. And maybe it is just our grocery store that has such variable heat in jalapeños.?. Again-thank you! I have made this probably a dozen times in the last year.
Hi Sherri,
I’m glad you love it and found a low sodium way to make it!
– Linda
I’ve made this twice now. It’s so good. We just happened to have a lime on hand. I’d strongly recommend a squeeze. It really makes the flavors shine.