Instant Pot Mulligatawny Soup is a fast, easy weeknight meal. Creamy and rich, with bright and spicy Indian flavors, this vegan-adaptable version is delicious as is or served over basmati rice. Video. *See notes for stovetop version.
In this time of seasonal transition, where signs of spring start to subtly tease, I find myself running towards the pockets of warm sunny rays. It feels so amazing to just bask in the light! Animals know too! I need to take more cues from my dog, who just luxuriates in the sun’s warmth without any other agenda.
I am loving more spice in my meals right now, too. Give me heat in all the forms to break me out of my hibernating winter haze! Make this Mulligatawny Soup with more or less of a spicy kick, up to you! Use your Instant Pot for a quick dinner, or simmer it on the stovetop.
What is Mulligatawny, and where did it originate?
Mulligatawny is a warmly spiced soup with a layered history. It's widely believed to have originated during the British Raj, when British colonists, accustomed to beginning meals with soup, sought to recreate that tradition in India. Since soup was not part of traditional Indian cuisine, a practical solution emerged: thinning and adapting a South Indian dish into a broth-like form. The name mulligatawny itself is thought to be a British misinterpretation of Tamil words referring to "pepper water."
When the British returned home, they brought the recipe with them, continuing to modify it by adding meat, apples, and other local ingredients. Over time, mulligatawny gained popularity in British restaurants and eventually beyond, earning a lasting place on menus that continues today. While there are countless variations now, classic mulligatawny often includes curry spices, chilies, and a touch of apple for subtle sweetness.
This version-made with red lentils, yams, and carrots-is lusciously creamy, gently sweet, and finished with a warming spicy kick. The flavors are balanced, comforting, and deeply satisfying.
Mulligatawny Soup Recipe Ingredients
- Ghee - Adds rich, buttery depth and warmth; coconut oil works well as a plant-based alternative.
- Whole spices (cumin seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds) - Bloomed in hot fat to release earthy, citrusy, and nutty aromatics that form the flavor foundation. You can substitute ground spices.
- Aromatics (onion, garlic, ginger) - Create a savory, fragrant base that builds depth and warmth.
- Vegetables (carrot, yam, tomato) - Add natural sweetness, earthiness, acidity, and body to the soup.
- Serrano chili - Adds gentle to moderate heat and fresh green spice while infusing the dish.
- Yellow curry powder - Adds layered spice, warmth, and golden color to the broth.
- Green apple - Adds brightness and gentle acidity to balance the spices.
- Vegetable broth - Forms the savory base of the soup; chicken broth may be used for extra depth.
- Red lentils - Break down as they cook, naturally thickening the soup and adding protein.
- Sea salt - Enhances and balances all the flavors.
- Coconut milk - Brings creaminess and richness, softening the spices.
- Fresh herbs (parsley and cilantro, including stems) - Add fresh, herbal brightness at the finish.
- Fresh lemon juice - Adds a final lift of acidity to balance richness and spice.
- Optional Garnishes- toasted cashews, more fresh herbs, yogurt drizzle.
How to make Instant Pot Mulligatawny
Gather and prepare your ingredients. Set the Instant Pot to the saute function.
Add ghee, cumin, mustard, and coriander seeds to the instant pot. Sauté 2 minutes. this is called blooming the spices.
Add onion, garlic, ginger, whole serrano chili, and curry powder. Sauté 3 more minutes.
Add carrot, yam, apple, broth, red lentils, sea salt, tomato, and coconut milk. Stir and scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any stuck bits and pieces. This will prevent the burn error.
Pressure cook for 10 minutes. Manually release. Stir in parsley, cilantro, and lemon juice. Taste and adjust salt and lemon to taste.
Stovetop Instructions
For the stovetop, follow the instructions using a Dutch oven and sauté over medium heat. After adding all ingredients, let it simmer covered for 40-50 minutes.
Serving suggestions
Serve on its own, over basmati rice, or with naan bread.
Storage
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, and the flavors get even better. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Wherever you are, I hope you can find some time to simply luxuriate in the sounds and feel of the changing season, letting go of the agenda even for just a moment. Be well! ~Tonia
More recipes you may like:
- Our 25 Best Instant Pot Recipes | Easy Pressure Cooker Meals
- Indian Coconut Lentil Curry
- Comforting Lentil Dal with Sweet Potatoes
- Our 25 BEST Lentil Recipes!
- Moroccan Lentil Quinoa Soup
- 35 Must-Try Indian Recipes to Make at Home
Instant Pot Mulligatawny Soup Video
Mulligatawny Soup Recipe (Instant Pot or Stovetop)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: instant pot
- Cuisine: Indian
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Instant Pot Mulligatawny Soup is so creamy and richly satisfying with bright and spicy Indian flavors. This vegan adaptable version is delicious as is or can easily be built upon adding chicken, more veggies and rice. An easy and fast weeknight meal! See notes for stovetop.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 serrano chili, slit in half leaving the stem intact
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 yam, cubed
- 1 green apple, cubed
- 4 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth
- 1/2 cup red lentils
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 15 ounces coconut milk
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro- leaves and stems, chopped
- 1-3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Saute: Turn instant pot on saute function. Heat the ghee over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and mustard seeds and toast 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Add in the onion, garlic, ginger, serrano chili, and curry powder; sauté about 3 minutes, until softened.
- Add veggies, lentils and liquids: Add carrot, yam, apple, broth, red lentils, sea salt, tomato, and coconut milk. Stir and scrape any bits stuck on the bottom. Secure the lid and set the instant pot to medium pressure for 10 minutes.
- Release the pressure: Carefully turn the steam valve to “Venting” to let the steam escape until the float valve drops and the lid unlocks.
-
Finish: Stir in parsley, cilantro and lemon juice. Adjust flavor if needed by adding salt, more lemon or spice.
Serve with yogurt and naan bread or basmati rice.
Notes
Feel free to swap out ground spices for the whole seeds, in a pinch.
Optional garnish– tempered seeds (so crunchy and flavorful!) Just before serving in a small skillet, heat 2 teaspoons ghee (or grapeseed oil), 2 teaspoons each: mustard seed, whole coriander & whole cumin. Fry a few minutes until spices darken a bit and smell heavenly.
Make more of a hearty meal; add chicken thighs or breasts (or chickpeas) to the Mulligatawny before pressure cooking, cook basmati rice in a separate pot. Serve in a bowl with soup ladled over the rice. Top with yogurt, chopped tomatoes, cashews and more fresh cilantro.
Stove Top: Saute: In a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat the ghee over medium heat. Add the cumin, mustard, and coriander seeds and toast 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Stir in the onion, garlic, ginger, serrano chili, and curry powder; sauté about 3 minutes, until softened. Add veggies, lentils and liquids: Add the carrot, yam, apple, broth, red lentils, sea salt, tomato, and coconut milk. Simmer: Bring to a gentle boil, then lower to a simmer, cover, and cook about 30 minutes, or until the lentils and vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Finish: Remove from heat and stir in the parsley, cilantro, and fresh lemon juice before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 1/2 cup
- Calories: 408
- Sugar: 7.5 g
- Sodium: 363 mg
- Fat: 28.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 23.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 36.1 g
- Fiber: 6.4 g
- Protein: 8.4 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Love this! Have made a few times. This time I am making for an equinox gathering. It is due to be a cool evening and this will warm us and be a great welcome to fall serving with homemade naan and raita. We will string marigold garlands with flowers from the garden. A lovely celebration. Perfect! Thank you Sylvia.
Love this so much Karen, sounds like a beautiful celebration! Really appreciate the share and review. Happy Equinox🧡
Another SIMPLE and DELICIOUS recipe!! Added cut pieces of 3 chicken thighs. Yum. Thank you!
Awesome, glad you enjoyed!
this was delicious! I followed the recipe, however i did not have fresh lemons on hand, so I used tamarind paste instead. I also blitzed the soup after cooking because i like it smooth, and then added the parsley and coriander and tamarind. I just loved the crunchy tempering of coriander seeds with cumin seeds and mustard seeds!
Awesome, sounds great!
amazing recipe
Glad you enjoyed!
I haven’t tried this recipe yet but it looks amazing. I have a question regarding the written instructions. What is the “tomato” when it says to add under the directions? Is this a typo?
Chopped tomato is listed in the ingredients, it goes in the soup to cook and you can also garnish with a little fresh tomato. Let us know how you like the soup.
My husband and I have never really cared much for sweet potatoes in stews and soups. But, since I always follow a new recipe exactly the first time I make it, I used sweet potatoes and we loved them in this recipe! Will not be making any adjustments when I make this again. Great as it is. Only thing I will do differently is reduce the cook time. 10 minutes on medium pressure made the sweet potatoes mushy and completely dissolved the lentils. Will try 5 minutes at medium pressure next time.
So happy I found your website. Best vegan site I’ve found by far. Working my way through your recipes and they do not disappoint!
You are so kind Leah- thanks! Glad you enjoyed this soup!
A wonderful soup. We enjoyed it as a vegetarian soup except for the chicken broth and it was great. I used half the coconut oil and half the coconut milk that was in the recipe for less fat, and it was not missed.
Good to know, glad you enjoyed!
I made this delicious soup for lunch today…right after my exercise class! I was out of sweet potatoes so I subbed roasted butternut squash. My version was done on the stovetop and included sautéed chicken breast and a good cup of chickpeas. We love the crunchy seed topping! Will be added to my favourites! Thank you!
Sounds perfect Anna, so glad you enjoyed!
You show cashews for a topping in the photo but not in the ingredients list.
Feel free to add cashews! It is not crucial for the soup but a yummy addition.
One of my favorite soups made so much easier! I think next time I’ll add some extra lentils but otherwise this recipe is so spot-on. Thank you for sharing!
Great to hear Max!
Excellent! I added chicken that was browned in a separate skillet. Might be better to brown with the onions? Was delicious in any case
Glad you enjoyed! The chicken will brown more in the separate skillet, like you did it. It would be good to sautéed with the onions and will probably result in softer texture. Both fine depending on your preference.
This was so delicious and easy to prepare. The flavors were incredible. It was a crowd pleaser.⭐️
Wonderful to hear Anne!
Absolutely delish!! I’ve made it twice so far. I used the stovetop, which filled the house with the amazing aromas. The only thing I did differently the second time was added chick peas and cubed potatoes and only because they are staple Indian foods.
Perfect Shelly, so glad you are enjoying!
We love this soup and its flavor, especially the tart from the green apple with the sweetness of the yams. It is so easy for quick weeknight meals that we make a few times per month.
Great to hear this Joel. Thanks for the reminder, I need to make this again soon!
Loved it as is what could replace the yam here? Family really doesn’t like yams or sweet potatoes in any shape or form, I’m hesitating between regular potatoes, bell peppers, and broccoli. Thank you so much!
I would probably add more carrots along with the potato, for the sweet balance that the yam gives.
You could try butternut squash
Or use the yams and dice until tiny (think almost food processor like). Then they disintigrate, give the sweetness, but can’t be tasted individually. (Doing this you may want to cut the quantity down a bit) I do that a LOT with my fam- my daughter claims to hate all squash/sweet potatoes- she has no idea how much ofbit she eats!
I made this soup on the weekend and it was delicious. I blended the whole lot once it was cooked then added chicken breast and peas. Leftovers were even better, the flavour improves. Definitely a winner on a cold night.
Glad you enjoed this!
Wonderful! Definitely putting this in the regular rotation. I doubled the mustard, cumin, coriander, and ginger because I know I like stronger flavors and didn’t want to worry about doing crispy spices at the end. Thanks for another winner!
Great Amanda!
Absolutely delicious. All my family now have a new favourite.
Great to hear Val!
I would add more heat to my personal preference next time, perhaps two Serrano peppers. This was delicious! Lovely addition of a green apple. I subbed sweet potato for yam and used a mix of yellow and red lentils.
Sounds great Noor.
The family loved this soup and its a definite keeper
Great to hear!
Hi Sylvia!
I have a silly question! If I want to double the recipe, would I just double the lentil and yam? Or all the ingredients? I recently made a curry that I tripled and it felt like it was very heavy on the spices because I just naturally tripled everything. I needed to top it up with yoghurt/more coconut cream. It is important to mention here that the recipe I used was not yours, and that I never made it as a one portion meal either. So I cannot compare.
I will certainly use your recipes, everything seems very healthy, straightforward and flavoursome! Oh and the colours!!!! Just love them!
Thanks!
Hi Zsofia- I would double everything. 🙂 If worried about spice level, you can always go a bit lighter and add more to taste- but I think you are fine to double here. 🙂
Thank you. The soup is great but be careful about adding the “Optional garnish- tempered seeds.” I ate the soup because it was so good but did not enjoy the fried seeds in it.
Thanks Kimberly!
So delicious, easy, and one of my favourite meals!
Thanks Jamie, I love this one too.
I loved this soup – especially with the addition of chicken, serving with basmati and all the suggested toppings. It was a surprise hit with my husband and three teenagers, as well. Your description of creamy, bright and richly satisfying is spot-on. The curry flavor is not too overpowering at all. Can’t wait to warm it up for leftovers today!
Thanks Jennifer, it is so gratifying to make everyone happy!
I would like to try this for a ladies group that will be coming to my house in a couple of weeks. I may need to double it, and I don’t have an instant pot. Do I need to make any adjustments?
Hi Lisa, Doubling should be no problem. Stove-top method is in the notes section under the recipe. Hope you and your ladies group enjoy!