Britomart's Curry Lentil & Chicken Soup

All credit to bibliosylph, who kindly posted her recipe for lentil soup in the Hizzy which was the basis for this. I was craving curry, so it changed. I've got good cooking karma going on this weekend or something, because I'm thrilled with this one, too. Bibliowench, I think you would love this - try it & let me know.

• 1 cup dried red lentils
• 1 cup dried brown lentils
• large chicken breast (mine was .85 lbs), sliced into 1-2 inch strips
• 1 package grape tomatoes, sliced in half (a can of diced tomatoes would be just dandy, too)
• 5 C vegetable or chicken broth (I used 1 C of chicken & 4 C of vegetable broth because that's all I had left)
• 1 TBSP vegetable oil
• 1 TBSP butter
• 5 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 1 medium onion, chopped finely
• 2 stalks celery, chopped finely
• Juice of one lemon
• 1 TBSP curry
• 1/2 TSP cayenne powder
• 1 TSP cumin
• 1/2 TSP nutmeg
• 1/4 TSP dried ginger
• 1/4 C fresh cilantro, chopped finely
• 1 C golden raisins (totally optional, but I love raisins in savory dishes, especially with chicken. I hate raisins in cookies or scones or cereal. Go figure.)

Melt butter/heat oil in a pot big enough for the soup (I used my 4 quart pot) over medium heat. Add garlic, onion & celery. Sautee until tender and translucent and golden and beautiful. More than 5 minutes, less than 10. Add all the seasonings & spices and stir them in. In another pan, boil broth & add chicken. Boil chicken for 20 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove chicken and put on a plate (you don't get a choice in this recipe!).

Add broth and lentils to garlic mixture, and increase heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat for a gently bubbling simmer. Continue simmering for about 45 minutes. I added a water through the process, those lentils are thirsty, absorbant little suckers! I probably ended up adding 3 C or so, but kept it really thick. You could almost eat it with a fork.

While it's simmering, and after the chicken cools, shred it! Shredding chicken is fun! After this weekend, I will never put chicken in a soup without shredding it! Wheee!

Reduce heat to medium-low & add the shredded(!) chicken, tomatoes, raisins & the lemon juice. Stir. Taste. Adjust the spices if it floats your boat. Cook for another hour or so, allowing all of the flavors to meld happily.