A slow-stewed whole chicken finished with rolled buttermilk dumplings.
Chicken with Rolled Buttermilk Dumplings
I love chicken and dumplings but you know what? Although drop dumplings are and will always be my favorite, I'm not particularly married to chicken and dumplings done one way and one way only.
I'm just too adventurous for that!
There are so many different methods and even types of dumplings out there and I like trying them all. Hey, life is short, right?
One thing is for certain. A big bowl of stewed chicken with dumplings is comfort food 101.
When I recently shared my meatloaf recipe on the Facebook page, a reader there told me that she uses the recipe in Jan Karon's Mitford Cookbook and Kitchen Reader (#ad) It had me curious enough to see just how different that one was that I went and found a copy.
It's an older cookbook, published in 2004, but it's a nice sized book and full of great sounding recipes, including this one listed as Puny's Chicken and Dumplings, which completely distracted me from the meatloaf!
The recipes come from characters of the novels centered around the small, fictional town of Mitford and actually come from the author's own recipes. If you're already a fan of the novels, you'll enjoy the companion cookbook!
By the way...
Just a quick reminder.... this is a blog, not just a "recipe site," and yes, there is a difference! If you aren't interested in the chit chat, info, photos, tips and such in a post, as always, you'll find the complete recipe text with measurements and instructions, as well as a printable document, a little bit further down the page. Just do a quick swipe or scroll down to the bottom of the post!
Here's what you'll need to make this Chicken with Rolled Buttermilk Dumplings:
For the Chicken:
- 1 (3 to 4 pound) whole fryer chicken
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 large rib celery, sliced thick
- 2 medium carrots, sliced thick
- 1 large bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- Water to cover, plus about an inch (about 4 quarts)
- 1 tablespoon chicken base or equivalent bouillon
For the Stew:
- 7 to 8 cups of the reserved chicken stock
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter
- 4 cups reserved cooked chicken
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups self-rising flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1/3 cup vegetable shortening
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
Here's how to make it!
Place chicken in a large stockpot, add vegetables and seasonings. Add water to cover plus about an inch and add a heaping tablespoon of chicken base or equivalent bouillon.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a low simmer and cook until cooked through, about 2 hours or longer, until meat is falling off the bone. While stovetop is my preferred method, I've also used a slow cooker and a pressure cooker to cook my chickens.
I cooked my chicken in advance, which I often do, and picked the chicken meat and refrigerated both once everything cooled down. If making ahead, remove chicken and set aside, let the stock fully cool and transfer to a lidded container and refrigerate. When chicken has cooled, remove skin and discard, pick chicken and transfer to a lidded storage bowl to refrigerate for up to 4 days.
When you do this, the fat will rise to top and you can scrape off all or part of it in order to defat the stock before making the chicken and dumplings.
This, my friends, is a bone broth!
Meanwhile, for the dumplings, whisk together the dry ingredients.
Add shortening and cut in until a coarse meal forms, as you might with biscuits.
Add buttermilk and stir in until a dough ball forms.
Sprinkle counter with additional flour, divide dough in half and cover other half in the bowl.
Pat out dough.
Use a rolling pin to roll thin, about 1/8 inch and cut into 1-inch squares.
Transfer stock from the chicken to stockpot and bring to a boil. If needed, add enough boxed chicken stock or broth to fill pot about halfway, about 7 to 8 cups total.
Add butter to stock.
Bring to a boil.
Begin dropping in dumplings a few at a time.
Gently stirring to prevent sticking. This first set of dumplings breaks down a bit but that's what you want, because that helps to thicken the broth.
Top with the cooked chicken.
Pour milk over top.
Roll out remaining half of dough as above, cutting into squares. Drop second batch of dumplings on top, gently pushing into the broth a little.
Cover, reduce to a low simmer and let cook for 20 minutes without removing lid. Uncover, taste and adjust for seasonings and spoon into serving bowls
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