Chicken and Dumplings

Are you familiar with Chicken + Dumplings? Growing up in Boston, I had never heard of this comfort-food meal until I moved down to Tennessee. I adore soups/stews + I’m a sucker for comfort food, so it’s no surprise that when I finally tried it, I loved it. Until this past weekend, though, I hadn’t considered making it from scratch. It’s served at lots of local restaurants, so if I crave it, there are plenty of places to grab a quick bowl. However, when I got my latest issue of Real Simple + saw a recipe for Classic Chicken + Dumplings + took it as a sign that it was time to try making it myself.

Well, I did, and it turned out SO delicious! Even my husband, not normally a huge soup fan, raved about how amazing it was. He’s a born-and-raised southerner, too, so he knows his Chicken ‘N Dumplings! =) It’s fairly easy to make, although a bit time-consuming due to a bunch of different steps. Trust me, though – it’s worth it. You wind up with a rich, creamy, super-delicious chicken broth loaded with juicy chicken, lots of savory veggies, + scrumptious, herb-filled dumplings. I’m seriously craving it again as I write about it … and I just had a bowl a few hours ago for lunch!

I made this on the first day of fall, + after we both loved it so much, my husband suggested that we make it a yearly tradition – to always make homemade Chicken + Dumplings on the first day of fall. How fun is that? It is so good that I’ll definitely be making it lots of times between now and the first-day-of-fall-2014 – any time I’m craving a delicious, made-with-love, perfect comfort food meal.

Chicken and Dumplings

serves 6-8, adapted from Real Simple magazine

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (or substitute 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs if you prefer)
kosher salt + black pepper
4 stalks celery, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
2 onions, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves or 2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, plus more for garnish

Directions

Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with ½ teaspoon each salt + pepper. Brown in batches, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate; reserve the pot.

Add the celery, carrots, onions, thyme, + garlic to the drippings in the pot + cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to soften, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the chicken, bay leaves, + 10 cups water. Bring to a simmer + cook until the chicken is cooked through, 30-45 minutes for chicken breasts, or 25 to 30 minutes for thighs. Discard the bay leaves + transfer the chicken to a plate; let cool. Shred the chicken with 2 forks + return it to the pot (discarding the skin and bones).

Whisk together 1/2 cup of the flour, 2 cups of the cooking liquid, + 1/4 teaspoon each salt + pepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk the flour mixture back into the pot + simmer until slightly thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Taste the soup and add more salt/pepper if needed.

Make the dumplings: Whisk together the remaining 2 cups of flour, the baking powder, baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt + 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk in the butter, buttermilk, + parsley. Reduce heat to low and drop the mixture into the broth in 12 spoonfuls. Simmer, covered, until the dumplings are firm, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve hot sprinkled with additional parsley, if desired.

 print this recipe