Mom's Chicken 'n Dumplings
My FIRST blog post!!! (let me hear you hollah!) Of course, I had to use my first post to pay tribute to the one who taught me my ways; this one's for you, ma (though, she may have created a kitchen monster). This recipe has embedded itself as a core food memory in my mind and it was one of mom's original cold weather staples for us growing up. Plus, it's quite literally only 8 degrees outside here and there is no better snow day meal than chicken and dumplings - and this recipe is the best. I'm sure everyone probably says their recipe, or even their mom's recipe is the best. Which I fully respect! But... this is the one. This one's actually the best.
So, without further adieu:
Mom's Chicken 'n Dumplings
Here's What You Need:
For the Soup
3 chicken breasts or 4-6 boneless thighs (rinsed, patted dry, and lightly seasoned with salt & pepper)
3 carrots
2 celery stalks
1 small onion - chopped
2 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
A pinch of dried rosemary
A "5 finger" pinch of salt
1/4 cup of flour
4 tbsp vegetable oil
3 tbsp unsalted butter
4 cups of chicken stock
1 cup of water
Optional (but highly recommended): 1/4 cup heavy cream or half and half
For the Dumplings
1 cup of flour
2 tsp baking powder
"3 finger" pinch of salt
3 tbsp of heavy cream
2 tbsp of melted (and then slightly cooled) UNSALTED butter
Here's What You Do
In a large pot, add 2(ish) of the 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Then, gently lay your chickens in there and cook until browned on each side (like 4-5ish on each side - depends on your stove, use your eyeballs). Pour the 4 cups of chicken stock over the chickens, add your herbs, bring to a boil, then pop the lid on and reduce heat to simmer for about 25 minutes or so (until the chicken is cooked through and the flavors do a meet and greet with eachother).
In the meantime, chop your veggies. *Enter the classic comfort soup trifecta: mirepoix*, pronounced "meeraquah" (don't ask me about that spelling). Carrots, celery, and onions bring out the hearty flavor in each other and the soup. Learn to love their relationship and don't you dare leave one out. Anyway, we're chopping. Do your garlic cloves while you're at it with the mirepoix, too. Once that's done, use tongs to remove your chickens and place on a spacious cutting board to be shredded. Pour your broth into another large bowl or pot removing the sprigs of herbs and bay leaves, then add the remaining vegetable oil and butter to the bottom of the original chicken pot. Heat over medium and add the veggies and garlic. Let those cook down until fragrant and slightly soft/translucent, then add the flour and continue to cook for another 5ish minutes, or until the flour has turned golden. Thennnnnn add the broth and the shredded chicken back to the pot, bring back to a boil, pop the lid back on, and reduce the heat down to simmer once more.
Take a deep breath and a sip of wine.
Moving on.
Dumpling time! Get out a small bowl and a medium bowl. In the small bowl, add and mix all the wet ingredients (cream, butter, egg), and in the medium bowl add all the dry (flour, baking powder, and salt). Pour the wet into the dry and mix JUST until combined. It will be a dry, shaggy dough. DON'T over mix or you should just throw the whole thing away and order a pizza.
That was dramatic, but you really don't want to over mix. Trust.
Use a spoon or your hands to plop chunks of dough into the simmering soup, and here's where you add your cream. Put the lid back on and let it continue to simmer for 8-10 more minutes.
TA-DA! You did it! Use a ladle to spoon perfectly proportioned amounts into bowls and top with fresh cracked pepper and chopped parsley. Done!
**Things To Know:
You can do this in the crock pot and let it go all day instead of making it all at once. Just add the dumplings in the last 10 minutes of cooking.
You can totally use Bisquick if you'd rather instead of making your own dumpling dough. Just follow the directions for biscuits and plop them in the pot. Tastes almost the same.
