Mulligatawny soup with lamb

The original recipe for Mulligatawny was really more of a rich, runny stew made with peppers, cumin, coriander seeds and sometimes lamb, goat or chicken. It was accompanied by rice, relishes and chutneys and often thickened with lentils. (Raffles Hotel in Singapore uses oatmeal to thicken its version of mulligatawny.) My version of the Anglo/Indian classic. Serve with boiled basmati rice.

Ingredients

50 g	Butter
1	Onion
1	Carrot
1	Red chilli
3 cloves	Garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp	Fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp	Ground cumin
1 tsp	Fresh coriander
1 tsp	Curry powder
¼ tsp	Ground turmeric
¼ tsp	Paprika
¼ tsp	Ground cardamom
½ cup	Red lentils
1 can	Diced tomato, 400g (Main)
3 cups	Chicken stock, or vegetable stock
350 g	Lamb, lean and boneless, cut into 2cm cubes (Main)
1 can	Coconut milk, 400g (Main)

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan. Dice the onion and carrot. Seed and dice the chilli. Sauté in the butter, until softened. Add the garlic, root ginger, ground spices, salt and pepper. Stir in the lentils, tomatoes, stock and lamb. Cover and simmer for 1 hour, until the lamb is tender.
2. Stir in the coconut milk and heat through carefully.
3. Great served garnished with chopped parsley. Boiled basmati rice can be served on the side or each diner can add it to their own bowl.