Vegetarian Mulligatawny: Indian-Inspired Vegetable Stew

Different versions of this spicy, rich Indian stew have been bouncing back and forth between us and our friend Michael from Midtown Stomp. I talk about him a lot here because he's a great friend and really talented with flavors of all kinds. He even has a really cool recipe for Oyster Mushroom Rockefeller in our upcoming cookbook. It was his innovation to add dried cherries instead of boring old raisins and also a dash of cinnamon to the mulligatawny. These additions really upped the ante.

To take it one step further, we've added a simple-but-hugely-flavorful homemade curry paste that easily comes together in the work bowl of your food processor. I stumbled upon this method while developing our Gumbo recipe and thought it would work well here -- and it did! I ate this stew for dinner one night, lunch the next day, and then had it with a poached egg on top for breakfast the following morning. That's how seriously good it is.

Veg mulligatawny goes great with our homemade Whole Wheat Naan. You can serve it on top of rice or eat it just how it is. Your call. 

Vegetarian Mulligatawny: Indian-Inspired Vegetable Stew

1 medium onion (roughly chopped)
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger
8 cloves garlic (peeled)
1 medium tomato (cored)
2 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon sambal
1 tablespoon cane sugar (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1/2 cup lentils
3 cups vegetable broth (more if needed, like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 tablespoon soy sauce (we like Bragg's)
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries
1 medium Russet potato (peeled and diced)
1 medium green pepper (peeled and diced)
1 medium head of cauliflower (broken into florets)
4-5 medium carrots (diced)
1 can coconut milk (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)
1 cup salted whole cashews (to garnish)
1/2 cup cilantro leaves (to garnish)

Into a food processor place the onion, ginger, garlic, tomato, curry powder, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, sambal, sugar, and vinegar. Blend until a loose paste forms and all ingredients are throughly blended. 

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt the butter and add the curry paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until most of the moisture has evaporated and the paste becomes very thick. Add the lentils, broth, and soy sauce. Stir, cover, and allow mixture to cook for 10 minutes to soften the lentils. Add the cherries, potato, pepper, cauliflower, carrots, and coconut milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until vegetables are tender. Serve garnished with cashews and cilantro leaves and add a side of naan. (Makes about 3 1/2 quarts or about 6 servings.)