Chicken and Dumplings Image Used Under Creative Commons License From jocooks.com
My Citizens, we are in the depths of Winter and few dishes are as warm and comforting as the classic recipe for chicken and dumplings! I am currently visiting my magnificent in-laws in the tiny town of La Vernia, TX – population 1,250 in the South Texas hill country!
They pride themselves (justifiably) in their interpretation of this recipe, so I am sharing my version of this sumptuous feast as well!
Chicken and dumplings is a dish which consists of a chicken cooked in water, with the resulting chicken broth being used to cook the dumplings by boiling.
A dumpling—in this context—is a biscuit dough, which is a mixture of flour, shortening, and liquid (water, milk, buttermilk, or chicken stock). The dumplings are either rolled out flat, dropped or formed into a ball.
It is a popular comfort food dish, commonly found in the Southern and Midwestern United States, that is also attributed to being a French Canadian meal that originated during the Great Depression.
Chicken and dumplings as a dish is prepared with a combination of boiled chicken meat, broth produced by boiling the chicken, multiple dumplings, and salt and pepper for seasoning.
Various commercial preparations of chicken and dumplings are available, including canned and frozen versions of the prepared dish. Frozen raw dumplings, typically very flat strips about 1×4 inches, can be cooked in any broth.
The consistency of the prepared dish, whether homemade or purchased, varies from a thin soup to a very thick casserole-like consistency, easily eaten with a fork. Thicker preparations are made by gently simmering the dumplings longer and/or adding flour or another thickening agent directly to the broth.
My glorious Citizenry – my recipe involves zero shortcuts and is a 2 day affair to make! First you roast a chicken, then you make a flavorful stock, then the supreme sauce (yes that is the classic French name for it!), and lastly the dumplings! It is herbaceous, wonderful and a summation of all things delicious that will well-reward you for your efforts! 🙂
1/4cup fresh chopped herbs, such as thyme, parsley and rosemary
1 onion, halved
4 garlic cloves, smashed
Fresh whole herbs, such as rosemary, thyme and parsley sprigs
***
1 slice Niman Ranch Ham Steak, diced
1–2 tablespoons schmaltz (rendered chicken fat)
1 package sliced button mushrooms
Peanut oil
Cream Sherry (at least 1/3 cup, minimum)
***
Chicken Stock:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, cut in large chunks
2 celery stalks, cut in large chunks
1 onion, halved
1 garlic bulb, halved
Reserved chicken bones
Cold water + 1 carton low-sodium chicken broth
Several branches fresh parsley
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
***
Dumplings:
2cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 to 1cup buttermilk
***
Supreme Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon flour
1/2cup diced carrot
1/2cup diced celery
1/2cup frozen peas
1 finely diced red pepper
2 shallots, minced
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon minced rosemary
2 tablespoons minced thyme
4 tablespoons minced celery leaves
1 tablespoon minced dill
1/4cup flour
6cups chicken stock
Instructions
Roasted Chicken:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the chicken and discard. Rinse the chicken under cold water, inside and out. Pat dry thoroughly with paper towels. Season the body and cavity of the chicken generously with salt and pepper.
In a small bowl, mash together the butter, lemon juice, and chopped herbs. Rub the herbed butter all over the chicken, as well as under the skin. Put ½ lemon, ½ onion, garlic, and whole herbs inside the chicken cavity, for added flavor. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine.
Place the chicken, breast side up, in a roasting pan fitted with a rack. Roast for 1 hour until the meat is no longer pink. When cool enough to handle, shred the breast meat and drumstick meat, discarding the skin and set aside. Reserve the remaining carcass for chicken stock.
In a Dutch oven, melt schmaltz over medium heat and add ham. Fry until lightly browned, remove meat. Add peanut oil (good amount) and add mushrooms, scraping bottom of pan. Fry until soft and golden, remove. Add chicken shreds, then sherry, stir until sherry is evaporated, remove chicken and any remaining pan juices to ham and mushrooms, reserve.
Chicken Stock:
To prepare the stock, coat a large stockpot with olive oil and place over medium heat. Add the vegetables and saute for 3 minutes. Add the reserved chicken bones, water, and herbs; simmer for 1 hour. Strain the stock to remove the solids and set aside.
Dumplings:
To prepare the dumplings: sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs and milk together; pour the liquid in the dry ingredients and gently fold. Mix just until the dough comes together, the batter should be thick and cake-like.
Supreme Sauce:
To prepare Supreme Sauce: In a Dutch oven, melt butter and heat oil over medium heat. Add carrot, celery, garlic, and bay leaves. Sauté until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add chicken mixture and chopped herbs, then stir in the 1 tablespoon flour and cook 1 minute.
Add ¼ cup flour and continue to stir and cook for 2 minutes to cook the flour and remove the starchy taste. Slowly pour in the chicken stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition.
Let sauce simmer until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. In the last 5 minutes add the frozen peas.
Using 2 spoons, carefully drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the dumpling batter into the hot mixture. The dumplings should cover the top of the sauce, but should not be touching or crowded. Let the dumplings poach for 10 to 15 minutes until they are firm and puffy. Season with freshly cracked black pepper and garnish with chopped parsley, celery leaves and dill before serving.
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