Chicken & dumplings is the epitome of comfort food. A hearty and thick stew filled with chunks of chicken and a mixture of vegetables. Combined with fluffy homemade dumplings to ensure that no one’s left hungry.
Tips, Tricks & Suggestions
- Skin-on, Bone-in: When it comes to today’s recipe you can use either chicken breast, chicken thighs, or even chicken legs. That choice all comes down to your personal preference/what you have on hand. The only thing that I do recommend is that each piece of chicken has the skin still on, and hasn’t had the bones removed. Why? Well, first we need the skin because as it cooks it renders out fat a.k.a “schmaltz”. And sure you can still make this dish with regular oil/butter as a substitute. But schmaltz will give the dish a delicious and more pronounced chicken flavor. Secondly, we have the chicken bones. As they cook in the stew with the rest of the ingredients, they will release additional fat, plus collagen. Which is not only healthy for you but will also make the stew richer and more flavorful. So if you can always use skin-on, bone-in!
- Does it need cream?: Many recipes for chicken & dumplings will call for adding heavy cream. However, I find that the roux and the fact that the dumplings cook in the stew both provide plenty of thickness to the broth. And since I have a few lactose intolerant people in my family, the omission of cream means everyone can enjoy it. That being said you can add a tablespoon or two of heavy cream to the broth at the end if you want to. It will definitely make the broth to be extra rich and creamy.
- The two keys to fluffy dumplings: When it comes to making the fluffiest dumpling for this recipe you need to make sure that you do two things. 1. Don’t over-mix the batter. Just stir all of the ingredients together with a wooden spoon just until the batter forms and no longer. 2. Make sure that the dumplings are steamed not boiled. As you add the dumpling to the stew you might assume that the cook by boiling in the liquid. But that isn’t the case. Instead, you want the dumplings to sit on top of the simmering liquid with the lid on. And this will produce steam which will gently cook the dumplings without causing them to fall apart.
- Use the toothpick test to check if dumplings are done: The toothpick test is a tried and true method for checking the doneness of batter-based foods. And while it’s more often used in baking can also be used for today’s dumplings. To do it simply poke one of the dumplings with a toothpick (or something that is of similar shape and size). If it comes out clean that means the inside of the dumpling is fully cooked. But if it comes out with batter attached to it that means that the dumplings still need more time to cook. It’s really as simple as that!
- Can you make some of this dish ahead of time?: Of course! Feel free to make the stew (sans dumplings) a day or two ahead of time. And on the day that you do want to eat it all you have to do is reheat the stew to a simmer. Then make the dumpling batter, and cook the dumplings in the stew.
Other Comforting Dishes You Might Like
- American Goulash
- Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Mac & Cheese (baked)
- Salisbury Steak
- Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Turkey Pot Pie
Chicken & Dumplings Recipe
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour
Servings: 6
Ingredients
For the stew:
1 Tablespoon of oil or butter
3 Lbs of bone-in, skin-on chicken (you can use either breast or thighs)
1 Large onion, diced
2 to 3 Carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 to 3 Sticks of celery, roughly chopped
½ Teaspoon of dried thyme
½ Teaspoon of dried parsley
¼ Teaspoon of rubbed sage
⅓ Cup of all-purpose flour
6 Cups of chicken stock
1 Cup of frozen peas, thawed and at room temperature
Salt & pepper to taste
For the dumplings:
2 Cups of all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon of baking powder
1 Teaspoon of salt
¼ Cup of minced chives (optional)
3 Tablespoons of butter, melted
¾ Cup of milk
Instructions
- Brown up chicken: Sprinkle each piece of chicken with a little salt on both sides. Then heat 1 tablespoon of either oil or butter in a large heavy bottom pot on medium-high heat. Add the pieces of chicken skin side down and let them cook undisturbed for 5 minutes to render out the fat from the skins.
After 5 minutes flip each piece of chicken over and let them cook on the other side for another 5 minutes.
Then remove the chicken from the pot and set them aside on a plate. Once cool remove the chicken skins and discard them.
- Sautee the vegetables and herbs: Add the onion, carrot, and celery to the same pot. Saute these three ingredients for roughly 5 minutes or until the onion starts to become translucent. Then add the thyme, parsley, and sage and continue to saute everything for another minute or two.
- Make a roux: Add the ⅓ cup of flour to the pot and stir everything together. The flour should bind with the oil/butter & chicken fat in the pot to form a paste (called a roux) that coats all the pieces of vegetables. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Continue to stir everything for a couple of minutes or until the roux becomes tan in color.
- Add the stock: Pour ¼ of the stock into the pot. Stir everything so that the roux melts into the stock and forms a thick sauce. Make sure to stir well at this point as you don’t want any lumps of roux! Then pour the remaining stock and stir so that it forms a creamy broth.
- Finish cooking the chicken: Add each piece of chicken back to your pot. Increase the heat to let the liquid in the pot come to a boil.
Then reduce the heat so that the liquid is at a constant simmer. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until each piece of chicken is fully cooked. Then take the cooked chicken out of the pot and onto a cutting board. Remove the chicken meat from the bones and cut it into large bite-sized chunks.
And return the chicken meat back to the pot and cover it with a lid.
- Make dumpling batter: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and chives together in a mixing bowl. Then add the melted butter and milk. Gently mix everything with a wooden spoon until it just comes together. Make sure that you don’t over-mix the batter or else the dumplings will be dense and tough.
- Cook dumplings: Make sure that the pot is still at a low simmer. Then scoop out portions of the dumpling batter (roughly 1 tablespoon in size) and dump them over the simmering stew. Once all of the dumpling batter is added cover the pot and let them cook undisturbed for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes take the lid off and check to see if the dumplings are fully cooked by using the toothpick test. If the toothpick comes out clean then move on to the next step. If not then put the lid back on and let the dumplings continue to cook for another 5 to 10 minutes.
- Finish the dish: Add the defrosted peas to the pot and gently stir them into the rest of the dish. Then taste some of the broth and add salt and pepper to your liking.
- Ladle the chicken & dumplings into individual bowls and enjoy!
Chicken & Dumplings Recipe
Servings: 6
Ingredients
For the stew:
- 1 Tablespoon of oil or butter
- 3 Lbs of bone-in skin-on chicken (you can use either breast or thighs)
- 1 Large onion diced
- 2 to 3 Carrots peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 to 3 Sticks of celery roughly chopped
- ½ Teaspoon of dried thyme
- ½ Teaspoon of dried parsley
- ¼ Teaspoon of rubbed sage
- ⅓ Cup of all-purpose flour
- 6 Cups of chicken stock
- 1 Cup of frozen peas thawed and at room temperature
- Salt & pepper to taste
For the dumplings:
- 2 Cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon of baking powder
- 1 Teaspoon of salt
- ¼ Cup of minced chives optional
- 3 Tablespoons of butter melted
- ¾ Cup of milk
Instructions
- Brown up chicken: Sprinkle each piece of chicken with a little salt on both sides. Then heat 1 tablespoon of either oil or butter in a large heavy bottom pot on medium-high heat. Add the pieces of chicken skin side down and let them cook undisturbed for 5 minutes to render out the fat from the skins. After 5 minutes flip each piece of chicken over and let them cook on the other side for another 5 minutes. Then remove the chicken from the pot and set them aside on a plate. Once cool remove the chicken skins and discard them.
- Sautee the vegetables and herbs: Add the onion, carrot, and celery to the same pot. Saute these three ingredients for roughly 5 minutes or until the onion starts to become translucent. Then add the thyme, parsley, and sage and continue to saute everything for another minute or two.
- Make a roux: Add the ⅓ cup of flour to the pot and stir everything together. The flour should bind with the oil/butter & chicken fat in the pot to form a paste (called a roux) that coats all the pieces of vegetables. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Continue to stir everything for a couple of minutes or until the roux becomes tan in color.
- Add the stock: Pour ¼ of the stock into the pot. Stir everything so that the roux melts into the stock and forms a thick sauce. Make sure to stir well at this point as you don’t want any lumps of roux! Then pour the remaining stock and stir so that it forms a creamy broth.
- Finish cooking the chicken: Add each piece of chicken back to your pot. Increase the heat to let the liquid in the pot come to a boil. Then reduce the heat so that the liquid is at a constant simmer. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until each piece of chicken is fully cooked. Then take the cooked chicken out of the pot and onto a cutting board. Remove the chicken meat from the bones and cut it into large bite-sized chunks. And return the chicken meat back to the pot and cover it with a lid.
- Make dumpling batter: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and chives together in a mixing bowl. Then add the melted butter and milk. Gently mix everything with a wooden spoon until it just comes together. Make sure that you don’t over-mix the batter or else the dumplings will be dense and tough.
- Cook dumplings: Make sure that the pot is still at a low simmer. Then scoop out portions of the dumpling batter (roughly 1 tablespoon in size) and dump them over the simmering stew. Once all of the dumpling batter is added cover the pot and let them cook undisturbed for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes take the lid off and check to see if the dumplings are fully cooked by using the toothpick test. If the toothpick comes out clean then move on to the next step. If not then put the lid back on and let the dumplings continue to cook for another 5 to 10 minutes.
- Finish the dish: Add the defrosted peas to the pot and gently stir them into the rest of the dish. Then taste some of the broth and add salt and pepper to your liking.
- Ladle the chicken & dumplings into individual bowls and enjoy!
