CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

A wonderful comforting dinner and it’s the dumplings or biscuits that make this dish, little clouds of heavenly deliciousness.  This recipe is made with homemade chicken stock but you can skip this stage and use store brought chicken stock but it is so worth the time if you have it, as you will have the most moist and flavoursome chicken and stock ever.

Dumplings or Biscuits that is the question?  British dumplings are light airy melt in the mouth pillows but buttery flakey biscuits are something else too, I love them both I probably wavier to biscuits nowadays as I find the bottoms soak up a little stock when you bake them on top of the stew and you get a baked top and a whole another level of flavour of flakey buttery gorgeousness and then some stodginess loaded with chicken stew flavour, awesomely gorgeous.

Prep time 20 minutes / Cooking time 1 he 30 minutes / Resting time 45 minutes

Chicken Stew and Dumplings

Ingredients

(serves 6-8)

Stage One

Stock and Poaching the Chicken

1 large high welfare chicken

2 large onions quartered

4 carrots roughly chopped

6 cloves garlic bashed

2 ribs celery roughly chopped

1 leek roughly chopped

10 whole black peppercorns

1 tsp sea salt

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs thyme

10 parsley stalks

2-3 ltr water

2 jelly chicken stock pots optional if stock flavour is weak

Stage Two

Chicken Stew

1 tbsp butter

1 glut olive oil

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 onion finely chopped

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

3 carrots peeled and chunky chopped

4 potatoes peeled and chunky chopped

2 sweet potatoes peeled and chunky chopped

1/2 small butternut squash chunky chopped

Salt and pepper

2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

Dumplings

100g suet

200g plain flour

1 pinch white pepper

1 sprig thyme

1 generous pinch sea salt

Make the dumpling dough first and leave to rest, mix all the ingredients together not to vigorously, just bring together, using a small meatball scoop (I have the Pioneer Woman’s) ball up the dumplings and reserve on a tray until your stew is ready.

Or is it Biscuits 

2 cups plain flour

114g butter grated

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

3/4 cup full fat milk

1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley

To make the biscuits, place the flour, grated butter, baking powder, sugar and salt in a large bowl and using your finger tips rub to a chunky gravel add the parsley and milk, lightly  just bring the dough together to form a rough ball, turn out on a floured work top, gently push or roll out to around an inch and half thick cut in to 2" circles and brush the tops with the beaten egg wash.  These will be added to the last stage of cooking the stew.

Chicken Stock

Place all the ingredients in a large stock pot and bring to a gentle just simmer, pop a lid on and cook for one hour, take off the heat and leave the chicken to Cool in the stock water, the chicken will absorb some of the stock water and flavour as it cools making this some of the juiciest chicken you will ever eat.  Once cool enough to handle remove the chicken and strain and reserve the stock.  Remove all the meat off the chicken and reserve.

Chicken Stew

Next soften the onions, garlic and carrots in the butter and olive oil for 10 minutes then add the reserved strained stock and bring to a gently simmer, add the chopped vegetables and cook until just fork tender, season the stew to taste, add the reserved chicken, stir threw to combine equally then place your choice of biscuits or dumplings on top of the stew, NOW FOR DUMPLINGS  pop a lid on and cook for a further 20 minutes on the stove top until light and fluffy and FOR BISCUITS pop the casserole dish in a pre heated oven 180 C /  356 F with the lid off for 20-25 minutes, until light golden brown.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley and enjoy a generous comforting bowl.

Biscuits