How British is mulligatawny soup? As good as its name! But, it is surprising to know that mulligatawny soup originated in Madras region (now Chennai) during the British Raj times.
The literal meaning of mulligatawny is ‘black pepper flavoured water’. But, now it evolved as a creamy, thick and spicy soup that is filling and satisfying. Mulligatawny soup is rich with lentils and flavoursome with aromatic spices.
The name Mulligatawny is derived from one of the oldest languages of the world ‘Tamil’. The state Madras as known in British Raj times, now Tamilnadu is renowned for its hot and spicy dishes.
Mulligatawny soup is inspired by ‘Rasam’, a watery hot and spicy tamarind based soup cooked using exotic spices like cloves, mustard and fenugreek seeds, curry leaves and blackpepper corns.
In Britain most curry houses serve mulligatawny soup as a rich and creamy starter.
How do they achieve the thick and rich state to an original watery mulligatawny recipe? Plenty of vegetables like sweet potato, carrots, onions and even fruits like apples. Adding lentils and sometimes aromatic cooked basmati rice with loads of butter, cream or thick almond milk really makes mulligatawny soup a wholesome treat.
If made with love and passion, mulligatawny soup could be the highlight of your curry night!
Essentially Mulligatawny soup is prepared by boiling selected Indian spices in tamarind water and cooking in red lentils, fresh cream or nut milk, vegetables and curry leaves.
The inviting flavours and aromas of mulligatawny soup come from Indian spices like black pepper corn, cloves, turmeric powder, mustard and fenugreek seeds with a dash of fresh curry leaves.
Mulligatawny soup, which originated in Madras (now Chennai) originally was a vegetarian dish. Once brought to Britain transformed into a more invigorating, thick and rich soup to suit British palate by adding meat and lentils.
Chicken and lamb are the most common meats added in mulligatawny soup apart from lentils and creamy almond milk.
Yes, adding plenty of vegetables, lentils, sometimes flours and fruits instead of meats to thicken to the original recipe mulligatawny soup is suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
Make sure to replace dairy cream with almond or coconut milk, then mulligatawny soup is very much suitable to vegans.
Traditional mulligatawny soup recipe is based on the principles of ‘Ayurveda, the oldest science of health. Boiling the exquisite spices to prepare ‘rasam’ as it is known in some southern states for remedies such as colds and flu.
The modern day mulligatawny soup is as equally good for health as the original one. Moreover it contains protein rich lentils and healthy carbs to make it a wholesome meal.
