Chicken and Dumplings
It’s a creamy stew filled with chunks of tender chicken, bites of new potatoes, sweet onions, carrots, and tiny peas hiding underneath a cloud of plump, fluffy biscuit-like dumplings. And since winter has decided to send in an arctic blast across the South, it’s a perfect time to pull out the recipe for homemade Chicken and Dumplings!
Equipment
- Large Dutch oven or stockpot
Ingredients
- For the stew:
- 3 to 3-½ pounds chicken breasts, preferably bone-in and skin on
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 large sprig fresh rosemary*
- 8 to 10 sprigs fresh thyme*
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 cup chopped celery, about 1-½ stalks
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion, about 1 small onion
- 9 cups chicken stock, divided
- 2 teaspoon concentrated chicken base
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1-½ cups sliced carrots, about 4 carrots
- 3 cups cubed new potatoes, about 3 to 4 potatoes
- 2 cups organic frozen peas
- 1-½ cups milk
- 6 to 8 tablespoons flour
- For the dumplings:
- 2 cups flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon ground sage
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- ¾ to 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Place the chicken in a Dutch oven with the parsley, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves plus the chopped celery and onion.
- Add 8 cups of the chicken stock along with the chicken base, kosher salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium heat then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add the carrots and potatoes and continue cooking for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender.
- Remove the chicken from the stock and transfer to a pan until it’s cool enough to handle. Then remove the meat from the bone and shred or chop into bite size pieces.
- Combine the remaining cup of stock with the milk and the 6 tablespoons of the flour. (If you like a thicker stock, add all the flour.) Whisk until the flour is completely dissolved. Pour the flour mixture into the stew, stirring to blend together. Cook over medium heat until the stock thickens, about 15 minutes.
- Once the stock has thickened, add the chicken and the peas to the stew.
- For the dumplings:
- Combine the flour with the baking powder, poultry seasoning, ground sage, parsley, kosher salt, and pepper. Stir in ¾ cup milk and mix until blended, adding more milk if needed.
- Using a small ice cream scoop or tablespoon, measure out the dough and gently drop the dumplings on top of the stew. Do not stir!
- Cover the pan and cook over medium-low heat for 25 to 30 minutes or until the tops of the dumplings appear “dry” and no longer sticky to the touch.
Notes
*If you can't find fresh rosemary and thyme you can substitute with 2 teaspoons dried herbs.