Comfort food at it's finest! Fluffy dumplings rest atop a delicious chicken stew made with moist fresh chicken, carrots, celery, onions and freshly made chicken broth. While there are many steps to making authentic from-scratch chicken and dumplings, please don't be intimidated. The steps are simple, as are the ingredients. This is an "all day cooking" dish, but the actual hands on time averages around 30 minutes. Perfect for a cozy day at home. I use my 6 quart enameled cast iron pot for this recipe, and it is perfect for the job.
The bones of the stewed chickenplus any skin, cartilage, connective tissue
water to replenish the stewing pot
1onionpeeled and roughly chopped
2stalksceleryroughly chopped
1carrotpeeled and roughly chopped
Step Three: Making the Chicken Stew
3Tablespoonsolive oil
2onionspeeled and chopped
4carrotspeeled and chopped into rounds
4stalkscelerysliced
chicken meat from the stewed chickenMake sure there are no tiny bones hidden in the meat. Dice meat.
Fresh Broth
Step Four: Making the Dumplings
3cups self-rising flour
1/2 cupbuttermelted
1 1/2cup buttermilk
Step Five : Steaming the Dumplings on the Chicken Stew
chives, thyme or parsley for garnish
Instructions
Step One: Stewing the Chicken
In a large pot, submerge the raw chicken in water. Add the onion, celery, carrot, salt and pepper. Bring to a low boil, then lower the temperature to a simmer. Cover the pot, leaving a small vent for steam to escape. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
After the chicken is stewed, remove the carcass with a large slotted spoon. Place the hot chicken on a cutting board. Let it cool until you are able to touch it with your hands without burning yourself. Take all the meat off the bones and set all the meat in one pile, and the bones (skin, cartilage and connective tissue) in another pile. Chop the chicken meat into large chunks. Refrigerate the chicken.
Step Two: Finishing the Broth
Add the chicken bones back to the pot along with additional onion, celery, carrot. Bring to a low boil, then lower to a simmer. Cover the pot, leaving a small vent for steam. Simmer for 2 hours.After hours, strain the contents of the pot. Reserving the broth and discarding the bones and cooked vegetables. Set the broth aside.
Step Three: Making the Chicken Stew
In the olive oil, and on medium-high heat, saute the onions for about five minutes. Add the carrots and celery. Saute for an additional five minutes. Add the pre-cooked chicken meat and all of the fresh broth. Simmer on medium for 20 - 30 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
Step Four: Making the Dumplings
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the self-rising flour, melted butter and buttermilk. Stir until you have a stiff, shaggy dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly-floured surface. Work the dough, adding more flour if necessary until you have a somewhat smooth dough. Roll dough into a ball and cut into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball.
Step Five : Steaming the Dumplings on the Chicken Stew
Drop the dumplings into the simmering chicken stew and cover the pot with a lid. Lower the temperature of the burner to low and let the dumplings steam for 30 minutes. Serve in shallow bowls with plenty of broth. Sprinkle with parsley, chives or thyme to garnish.