Chicken and Dumplings

Chicken and dumplings is old school classic American comfort food. There is just something about its wholesome simplicity that I find myself craving from time to time.

The base of the dish is really good chicken broth. I start this by simmering a whole organic chicken with carrots, celery, onion, parsley, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Start with cold water, just enough to cover the chicken, cover, and bring up to a simmer until the chicken is cooked through. I pull out the chicken and set aside to cool. The broth gets strained and added into a clean stock pot. Once the chicken is cooled it gets pulled into large chucks with the skin removed and set aside.

The broth is brought up to a simmer and thickened slightly with some corn starch.

Diced carrots, celery, and onions get sauteed in some butter until softened and then added into the stock pot along with the chicken.

The stock can now be brought up to a low boil in preparation for cooking the dumplings.

The dumplings are a simple recipe consisting of flour, baking soda, buttermilk, butter, and salt. I roll the dough out into about a 1/2"thickness and cut into strips with a pizza cutter. The strips are added to the boiling stock, covered, and allowed to cook for 10-12 minutes.

We garnish with a little fresh parsley and black pepper.

Now that is some good classic comfort food.