The Ultimate Chicken And Dumplings Recipes

THE BEST CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a shallow bowl, mix 1/2 cup flour, salt and pepper. Add chicken, 1 piece at a time, and toss to coat; shake off excess. In a 6-qt. stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Brown chicken in batches on all sides; remove from pan., Add onion, carrots and celery to same pan; cook and stir 6-8 minutes or until onion is tender. Add garlic; cook and stir 1 minute longer. Stir in 1/4 cup flour until blended. Gradually add stock, stirring constantly. Stir in wine, sugar, bay leaves and peppercorns. Return chicken to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, 20-25 minutes or until chicken juices run clear., For dumplings, in a bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, whisk milk and melted butter until blended. Add to flour mixture; stir just until moistened (do not overmix). Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet; set aside., Remove chicken from stockpot; cool slightly. Discard bay leaves and skim fat from soup. Remove skin and bones from chicken and discard. Using 2 forks, coarsely shred meat into 1- to 1-1/2-in. pieces; return to soup. Cook, covered, on high until mixture reaches a simmer., Drop dumplings on top of simmering soup, a few at a time. Reduce heat to low; cook, covered, 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center of dumplings comes out clean (do not lift cover while simmering). Gently stir in cream, parsley and thyme. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• For the 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 the lemon halves, 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 meat, discarding the skin and set aside. Reserve the bones for chicken stock.
• For 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.
• For 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.
• For the sauce: In a Dutch oven, melt butter and heat oil over medium heat. Add carrot, celery, garlic, and bay leaves. Saute until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour to make a roux. Continue to stir and cook for 2 minutes to coat 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. Stir in heavy cream.
• Fold the reserved shredded chicken into the sauce and bring up to a simmer. 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 before serving.

MOMMA'S BEST CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Melt butter in a stock pot over medium-high heat. Add celery, carrot, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning; cook and stir until flavors combine, about 5 minutes. Push vegetable mixture to the sides and add chicken; cook until browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
• Pour enough water over the chicken to cover by 3 inches; bring to a boil. Stir, scraping the browned bits off of the bottom of the pot. Reduce heat; simmer until chicken is tender, about 1 hour. Transfer chicken and carrots to a serving plate with a large slotted spoon; let cool.
• Ladle 1/4 cup cooking liquid into a bowl; cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Mix in 2 tablespoons flour. Stir back into the pot.
• Place 2 cups flour in a large bowl; cut in shortening with 2 knives until mixture forms pea-sized bits. Mix in chilled chicken broth until dough is combined.
• Turn dough out onto a floured work surface. Knead 5 to 6 times; pat down to 1-inch thickness. Sprinkle lightly with flour; roll out to about 1/8-inch thickness. Cut dough into squares with a sharp knife.
• Drop squares, in batches, into simmering cooking liquid, moving squares to the side with each addition. Partially cover pot; simmer until dumplings are firm, about 12 minutes. Separate any dumplings that stick together. Remove from heat; keep covered.
• Bone chicken; cut into bite-sized pieces and return to the pot. Chop carrot; return to the pot. Cool chicken and dumplings, about 30 minutes, before serving.

THE ULTIMATE CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a large pot, add the chicken, 1 quart of water, onion, celery, garlic and peppercorns. Stew the chicken until completely cooked. Remove chicken from the broth and cool. Remove skin and bones. Cut the chicken into bite sized chunks or shred. Remove 1 - 2 cups broth to use in dumplings; allow to cool.
• To the remaining broth, add the rest of the water, salt, pepper, bouillon cubes and shredded/cubed chicken and heat to simmering.
• To make dumplings: Mix together dry ingredients. Mix egg with one cup of broth and add slowly to the dry ingredients. Use as much broth as needed to make a stiff dough. Knead the dough on floured board, roll very thin. Cut into 1-inch squares with a pizza cutter. Drop in simmering broth; cover and cook 20 minutes. Enjoy.
• If freezing, I will freeze the dumplings, still uncooked, separately from the soup. When time to reheat it, just bring dumplings back to room temperature, reheat the soup to boiling and drop in the dumplings. Very tasty!

HOMESTYLE CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat, add chicken and garlic.
• Immediately add celery and carrots.
• Add chicken broth, water and seasoning. Cover the pot and bring to a rolling boil. Maintain the boil for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
• When the chicken is cooked all the way through, it's time to make the dumplings.
• To make the dumplings, whisk together all of the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk together.
• Drop the dumplings into the chicken soup portion by spoonfuls.
• Allow the chicken and dumplings to cook uncovered for 10 minutes, then put the lid back on the dutch oven and allow it to cook for an additional 10 minutes and enjoy!

VEGAN NOT-CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a large soup pot, combine onions, carrots, potatoes, garlic, and broth. Heat on medium high and bring to a boil. Cook (uncovered) for about 15 minutes.
• Add frozen corn and peas, cook an additional 15 minutes, until potatoes are almost done (use a fork to pierce potatoes to check).
• Meanwhile, begin making the dumplings. I like to use my stand mixer for these, but a medium bowl and a fork will work fine also! Start by mixing together dry ingredients. Then, slowly pour in the almond milk and oil, using your fork to whisk as you go (or set the stand mixer to low speed). The dumplings should be combined well and STICKY. Set aside until the soup is ready for you to drop them in.
• Once the potatoes are close to done, and you have a good boil going, drop the dumplings by small spoonfuls into the pot. I like to work my way around the soup pot, making sure to fit as many as I can in! Once you are finished, the entire top of your pot should be filled in with dumplings. This recipe makes about 20, but it varies depending on how big you make them. Once you have all your dumplings in the pot, cover with a lid and cook for an additional 12-15 minutes. Leave the pot undisturbed for at least 10 minutes before you check!
• After 10-12 minutes, you can check your dumplings and taste them to see if they're done. You know they're finished when the middle is no longer gooey or doughy. Once finished, turn off heat and stir in the chopped parsley. Sprinkle with black pepper and a pinch of salt, if desired.