Homestyle Chicken and Dumplings
Serves: 6 to 8
 
Ingredients
  • Stew:
  • 4 tablespoons canola oil, divided
  • 1 (3-pound) whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
  • 5 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 4 stalks celery, diced
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1 large leek, halved lengthwise and sliced into ½-inch pieces (white and light green parts only)
  • ¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 quarts water
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon paste
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • Dumplings:
  • 2 cups self-rising flour
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • ½ cup whole milk
Instructions
  1. For stew: In a large Dutch oven, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook until browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove chicken, reserving drippings in pot.
  2. Add carrots, celery, onion, leek, and remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pot. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
  3. Stir flour and garlic into vegetables until smooth; cook for 2 minutes. Stir in 2 quarts water, bouillon paste, bay leaves, and pepper; return chicken to pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest portion of chicken registers 165°, about 45 minutes.
  4. Remove chicken; discard bay leaves. Let chicken cool enough to handle. Shred chicken, discarding skin and bones.
  5. Return chicken to pot, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, and stir in parsley.
  6. For dumplings: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Using a fork, cut in cold butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in milk just until dry ingredients are moistened.
  7. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead just until dough comes together, 3 to 5 times. Roll dough to ⅛-inch thickness. Cut into 2-inch pieces.
  8. Add dumplings, a few at a time, into simmering soup. (Do not stir.) Cover and gently shake pot in a circular motion; cook until dumplings float, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve immediately.
Notes
Dumplings How-To

Cutting In Butter: Dumplings are essentially thin biscuits, and just like with biscuits, cutting in butter is an important step. While the dumplings cook, the butter melts and produces steam, creating tiny pockets that result in a light and fluffy texture.

Stirring in Milk: Gently stir in milk until most of the flour is moistened. Just like with biscuits, the dough will look slightly dry. Overmixing the dough until it’s completely wet results in chewy dumplings.

Kneading Dough: Gently knead the dough just enough until a cohesive round is formed, 3 to 5 times. Overworking the dough will create tough dumplings.

Shaping Dumplings: You can shape the dumpling dough into balls or roll out the dough, but we prefer rolled dumplings for faster cooking and to avoid a doughy center. Cut the rolled dough into any shape you prefer.

Dumpling Drop: Gently drop dumplings randomly into the simmering broth. Don’t stir the dumplings or place them fully on top of each other; this will cause them to break apart or stick together. Gently shake the pot in a circular motion to help the dumplings settle and not stick together.
Recipe by Paula Deen Magazine at https://pauladeenmagazine.com/homestyle-chicken-dumplings/