Topic: "Soup Nazi's" Mulligatawny Soup

[StoneCut]

Hi everyone,

you might have seen "The Soup Nazi" on some Seinfeld episodes before. Well, in one episode, Kramer orders a Mulligatawny soup.

After the show aired, a fairly famous US food cloner named Todd Wilbur went out to copy that recipe. I found it in the Book "Todd Wilbur - Top Secret Recipes Unlocked".

Please mind that I have not tried this recipe but since I've never had a Mulligatawny soup before in all my life I wouldn't be able to make a good comment on it, anyway.

I'd be interested to hear what you professionals think of it (and if a Mulligatawny soup is something I should definitely try). It'd be even more interesting if someone tried out this actual recipe, of course.

There are also some user comments on the official homepage which might be helpful:
http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/Soup-Nazis-Indian-Mulligatawny-Soup-Recipe.html

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Elaine: "Do you need anything?"
Kramer: "Oh, a hot bowl of Mulligatawny would hit the spot."
Elaine: "Mulligatawny?"
Kramer: "Yeah, it?s an Indian soup. Simmered to perfection by one of the great soup artisans in the modern era."
Elaine: "Oh. Who, the Soup Nazi?"
Kramer: "He?s not a Nazi. He just happens to be a little eccentric. You know, most geniuses are."

Kramer was right. Al Yeganeh -- otherwise known as The Soup Nazi from the Seinfeld episode that aired in 1995 -- is a master at the soup kettle. His popular soup creations have inspired many inferior copycats in the Big Apple, including The Soup Nutsy, which was only ten blocks away from Al?s original location on 55th Street. Yeganeh?s mastery shows when he combines unusual ingredients to create unique and delicious flavors in his much-raved-about soups. In this one, you might be surprised to iscover pistachios and cashews among the many vegetables. But it?s a combination that works.

I took a trip to New York and tasted about a dozen of the Soup Nazi?s original creations. This one, the India n Mulligatawny, was high on my list of favorites. After each daily trip to Soup Nazi headquarters (Soup Kitchen International), I immediately headed back to the hotel and poured samples of the soups into labeled, sealed containers, which were then chilled for the trip back home. Back in the underground lab, portions of the soup were rinsed through a sieve so that ingredients could be identified. I recreated four of Al?s best-selling soups after that trip, including this one, which will need to simmer for 3 to 4 hours, or until the soup reduces. The soup will darken as the flavors intensify, the potatoes will begin to fall apart to thicken the soup, and the nuts will soften. If you follow these directions, you should end up with a clone that would fool even Cosmo himself.

Ingredients:
4 quarts water (16 cups)
6 cups chicken broth
2 potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery
2 cups peeled and diced eggplant (about 1/2 of an eggplant)
I medium onion, chopped
1 cup frozen yellow corn kernels
2/3 cup diced canned roasted red pepper
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1/2 cup roasted cashews
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
pinch dried marjoram
pinch ground nutmeg

Method:
1. Combine all the ingredients in a large pot and place over high heat.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3 to 4 hours, or until the soup has reduced and is thick and brownish in color. It should have the consistency of chili. Stir occasionally for the first few hours, but stir often in the last hour. The edges of the potatoes should become rounded as they fall apart, and the nuts will soften. Serve hot.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS.

Tidbits
Because of the extreme reduction, I found that the salt in the chicken broth was enough for the recipe. However, if you use a low-sodium broth, you may need to add a little salt to the soup.

[natterjak]

It may or may not be a good facsimile of the soup nazi's mulligatawny, but with only 1 tsp of curry powder and no ground coriander at all I can't see how it can taste anything like what I know as mulligatawny   

Much as I respect Todd Wilbur's efforts I'm struggling to understand how you can sieve a soup to identify its many dissolved components?

Ps... 3 TBS sugar?! 

[StoneCut]

Hhhm, I'm with you on the content analysis  he does with a sieve - that puzzles me, too. I had a look at services that analyze food but there is no such thing as a "black box" where you just shove in the food and out comes a recipe or even the actual ingredients, so I don't see how those would help (much), either. I wish I knew how these people really do it and I'd have a go at cloning Patak's

Regarding spicyness: Read the comments on the TSR website - some people complain it's not spicy enough but then others say it's spicy enough for sure if you let it simmer for 4+ hours. I really have no idea, might depend on the Curry powder, too.

I have this massive database of Copycat recipes and it's got to be good for something

[Peripatetic Phil]

Crikey, there's a whole world out there of which I know nothing. Who are Messrs Seinfeld, Kramer, (Ms) Elaine, and Yageneh, and is the latter a fictional creation or a real person (I assume the first three are real) ?

** Phil.

[StoneCut]

I take it you never watch Telly

[Peripatetic Phil]

I take it you never watch Telly

Of course I do : Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, Vuelta Espagna, snooker, table tennis, show jumping and three-day eventing -- but as far as I know, Messrs Seinfeld et al don't take part in any of these ...

** Phil.