When I attended USC, there was a lunch shop across the street called A Taste of India. The fare was hardly haute cuisine, but it was warming, tasty, and very inexpensive for a budget-challenged college student. It was also my first real exposure to food from that region of the world. At the shop, they served a mellow, but delicious yellow dal mixed with spinach and diced tomato. This recipe attempts to recreate that dish, with a slight change in texture.
The cool weather in northern Pennsylvania was a good excuse to revisit this wonderful, rich and hearty soup. There’s not much in the way of brothat least when I prepare itbut if thick and chunky isn’t your style, you can easily change the consistency by adding more milk, cream, and roux. This recipe is easily one of my all-time favorite comfort foods.
5-7 pieces of thick cut bacon
2½ lbs chicken breast
1½ lbs chicken thigh, with skin and bone
2½ tsps salt + extra
fresh ground pepper
1 white onion, chopped
6-8 stalks of celery, chopped