Toor Dal Soup with Chicken

I have always been an ardent fan of the Mulligatawny Soup, but have been successful to a very limited extent to cook it myself at home and create the same flavor as that in restaurants in India. So I modified my list of ingredients and made a soup as an adaptation from Mulligatawny. My end product – something more than a soup and lighter than a stew. It's a satisfying meal by itself. And we’ve always loved having this during Fall and Winter.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons cooking oil (Canola/Vegetable)
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 Red pepper, cut lengthwise or julienned
¼ teaspoon cumin-coriander powder
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon turmeric powder (You could go easy on the Turmeric if you wish to)
¼ cup fresh or frozen peas
½ cup cooked Toor Dal
¾ cup low sodium chicken broth
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
½ cup water
¼ cup grilled chicken (cooked) cut into ¼ “ cubes ( I used store bought)
Salt to taste
Chopped fresh cilantro to garnish

Method

Heat oil in large pan. Sauté garlic, ginger, peas, grilled chicken and red peppers with tumeric and cumin-coriander powder, for 5-6 mins.

Blend cooked Toor Dal to a thick pulp in a bowl. Add to this pulp, chicken broth, water and lemon juice. Mix well.

Pour this into the sautéed mixture. Add salt to taste and cook on low heat, covered, for 7-8 mins.

Remove from heat, add freshly ground black pepper. Mix well. Garish with fresh cilantro. Serve hot.

This recipe serves 2-3.

If you prefer to avoid chicken, then you could add a tablespoon or two of cooked brown rice. I avoid chicken at times and add a table spoon of cooked brown rice. Plus I load it up with peppers- red, green and orange. At times I also add water or decrease the quantity of Toor Dal to reduce the consistency (like in the picture).

I came across JFI: Toor Dal hosted by Linda and decided to contribute this.