Chicken and Dumplings
There are many recipes for “Chicken and Dumplings.” Mine is just a little bit different. Let’s break it into three parts.
Meat: This is simply a matter of choice. You might choose to cook and de-bone a whole chicken, use chicken breast strips, or deboned thighs. You can do the easy method and use canned chicken. (You could even use squirrel meat. J) I store un-breaded chicken breast strips in my freezer and this is what I usually use. I usually have 2 to a freezer bag, pop this in the microwave and cook for 2 or 3 minutes.
Dumplings: I think there are basically 3 types---neatly rolled and cut dumplings, “drop” dumplings, and easy dumplings made with cut-up can biscuits.
Soup Base: Some cooks have thin soup base, others thicken theirs with flour or cornstarch. Since I personally never liked either of these options, I set out many years ago to create something with more flavor.
For this recipe you will need:
1-2 cups cooked chicken of your choice
3 cups water
2 sticks of creamy sweet butter
3 cans of chicken stock
3 cans of milk
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of cream of celery soup
salt and pepper to taste
4 Cups of flour
What you do:
1. Cut up your cooked chicken to the desired size (I like small cubes) and put in a very large soup pot with the broth and water. Allow to simmer while you prepare the dumplings.
2. In a bowl put about 4 cups of flour, 1 stick of melted butter, and about 1/3 can of milk. Stir, adding water until you get a nice consistency between pancakes and biscuit dough. Set aside.
3. Add the soups to your pot. Using a potato masher, if necessary, thoroughly blend the soup and liquids together. Turn the heat up to medium high.
4. Add a dash of black or white pepper and a pinch of sea salt.
5. Add the remaining milk and butter.
6. The secret to adding dumplings of any type is to make sure that your liquid is boiling. Obviously, the larger the amount, the longer it takes. Stir often, without scraping the bottom of the pot.
7. As the bubbles begin to rise to surface, start dropping in tablespoon size spoonfuls of dumpling mix into the pot. About every 3 or 4 spoonfuls, you will need to gently stir the broth to make it easier to drop dumplings in the center. Continue until all has been added or it appears to be as thick as you want. Enjoy.
Serve alone or with Cornbread. Leftovers are great reheated in the microwave. This recipe can be halved or doubled. (Watch the size of your pot. I find that the entire recipe takes about 3x the space of your basic ingredients. )
There are many recipes for “Chicken and Dumplings.” Mine is just a little bit different. Let’s break it into three parts.
Meat: This is simply a matter of choice. You might choose to cook and de-bone a whole chicken, use chicken breast strips, or deboned thighs. You can do the easy method and use canned chicken. (You could even use squirrel meat. J) I store un-breaded chicken breast strips in my freezer and this is what I usually use. I usually have 2 to a freezer bag, pop this in the microwave and cook for 2 or 3 minutes.
Dumplings: I think there are basically 3 types---neatly rolled and cut dumplings, “drop” dumplings, and easy dumplings made with cut-up can biscuits.
Soup Base: Some cooks have thin soup base, others thicken theirs with flour or cornstarch. Since I personally never liked either of these options, I set out many years ago to create something with more flavor.
For this recipe you will need:
1-2 cups cooked chicken of your choice
3 cups water
2 sticks of creamy sweet butter
3 cans of chicken stock
3 cans of milk
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of cream of celery soup
salt and pepper to taste
4 Cups of flour
What you do:
1. Cut up your cooked chicken to the desired size (I like small cubes) and put in a very large soup pot with the broth and water. Allow to simmer while you prepare the dumplings.
2. In a bowl put about 4 cups of flour, 1 stick of melted butter, and about 1/3 can of milk. Stir, adding water until you get a nice consistency between pancakes and biscuit dough. Set aside.
3. Add the soups to your pot. Using a potato masher, if necessary, thoroughly blend the soup and liquids together. Turn the heat up to medium high.
4. Add a dash of black or white pepper and a pinch of sea salt.
5. Add the remaining milk and butter.
6. The secret to adding dumplings of any type is to make sure that your liquid is boiling. Obviously, the larger the amount, the longer it takes. Stir often, without scraping the bottom of the pot.
7. As the bubbles begin to rise to surface, start dropping in tablespoon size spoonfuls of dumpling mix into the pot. About every 3 or 4 spoonfuls, you will need to gently stir the broth to make it easier to drop dumplings in the center. Continue until all has been added or it appears to be as thick as you want. Enjoy.
Serve alone or with Cornbread. Leftovers are great reheated in the microwave. This recipe can be halved or doubled. (Watch the size of your pot. I find that the entire recipe takes about 3x the space of your basic ingredients. )