Curried Cream of Chicken Soup

Submitted by undercover7

Velvety curried cream of chicken soup made from scratch with a whole chicken, rice, carrots, and sweet peas blended into a silky, spice-kissed broth finished with half-and-half. Pure comfort in a bowl.

YIELD

4 servings

PREP

30 min

COOK

90 min

READY

120 min

This is soup the way your grandmother would have made it if she’d spent a year traveling through India. A whole chicken simmers low and slow in curried broth with carrots and rice until everything is fall-apart tender.

The solids get pureed into a luxuriously smooth base, then the half-and-half goes in and suddenly you’ve got something that feels like a warm hug on a cold night.

Diced chicken and bright green peas go back in at the end, giving every spoonful real substance.

Chef Tips

Bloom the curry powder in the butter with the vegetables. This wakes up the spices and builds a much deeper flavor base than adding them to liquid.
Let the chicken cool in the broth before removing the meat. This keeps the chicken moist and pulls more flavor into the stock.
Add the half-and-half off the heat or on very low flame to prevent it from breaking.
Taste and adjust the curry powder. Two tablespoons is a starting point, but if you love bold curry flavor, go heavier.

Ingredients

TABLESPOONS UNSALTED BUTTER

CUPS ONIONS
yellow, finely chopped

CARROTS
peeled and chopped

TABLESPOONS CURRY POWDER
or more

CUPS CHICKEN BROTH

EACH PARSLEY SPRIG *

EACH CHICKEN
3 pounds, quartered *

CUP LONG GRAIN RICE

CUP LIGHT CREAM (HALF&HALF)

OUNCES GREEN PEAS
defrosted

SALT AND BLACK PEPPER
to taste *

Directions

Melt the butter in a pot. Add onions and carrots and curry powder and cook over low heat, covered, until vegetables are tender, about 25 minutes; stir occasionally.
Add the stock, parsley, chicken, and rice. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat, and cover.

Cook at a simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, or until chicken is done.

Cool chicken in stock. Remove meat from the bones, and dice it.

Reserve the meat.

Pour the soup through a strainer and put the solids in a food Add 1 cup of the liquid and process until smooth. Reserve the rest of the liquid.
Return puréed soup to the pot and add the half and half. Stir in additional cooking stock, about 4 cups, until soup reaches desired consistency.
Add reserved diced chicken and defrosted peas and simmer for 15 minutes or onutl peas are done. Season to taste, and serve.