Monday, March 2, 2009

Curried Chicken Soup with Carrots

I hadn't made this soup in a couple years, but I have a lot of carrots around lately for some reason and it reminded me how much I used to love this soup. It's extremely easy to make, extremely healthy, and has a really unique flavor (in a good way). This batch turned out better than I ever remember it tasting before, so I'm glad I wrote down approximately what I did so that I can replicate it in the future...

Curried Chicken Soup with Carrots
   1 teaspoon oil
   2 pounds sweet onions, chopped
   1.5 pounds carrots, chopped
   2 tablespoons curry powder
   1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
   1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
   1/4 teaspoon cayenne
   6 cups chicken stock
   1/4 cup flour
   6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small bite-sized pieces
      fresh cilantro leaves, to serve

Heat the oil in a large pot over high heat, then add the onions and carrots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrots soften and the onions begin to color (about 30 minutes). Add the spices (curry powder through cayenne) and stir to combine. Transfer about 2/3 of the mixture to a blender (can do more or less than this, depending on how many carrot chunks you want in your final soup) along with the flour and about 2 cups of the chicken stock, then blend until smooth. Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper and add to the soup pot. Cook over high heat, stirring frequently, until the chicken starts to color. Add the mixture from the blender along with the remaining chicken stock. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the soup is slightly thickened and the chicken is cooked through. Serve with fresh cilantro.

Serves 6.

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