Description
Tender chicken and dumplings cooked together in a savory broth.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 3 lb chicken (cut into pieces if needed)
- 2 cups flour
- 3 tablespoons chicken boullion
- 4 quarts water
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
- 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns
- salt (to taste)
- pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Place your chicken in a large, heavy-bottomed pot, and add enough water to just cover the pieces. Add your peppercorns and salt the water generously. Not like pasta water generous tho, don’t go crazy.
- Bring to a boil and reduce heat slightly. Boil until the chicken is cooked through; about 45 minutes, then remove from the pot and set aside to cool.
- Remove about 3/4 of a cup of broth from the pot and set aside. Strain the remaining broth and return it to the pot.
- When the chicken has cooled enough to handle debone it and remove any excess fat. Shred the meat while your hands are already messy and set it aside.
- Add the skin and bones back to the pot along with just enough water to cover. Stir in your chicken bouillon and some black pepper. Allow to simmer over medium-low heat while you prepare the dumplings.
- In a medium bowl sift together flour and approximately 1/2 teaspoon of salt (or to taste). Pour in the chicken broth we reserved earlier and combine into a moist dough. It’ll be just slightly sticky.
- Turn your dough out onto a floured surface and roll it out to your desired thickness. Most do about 1/8″. Cut the dough into your desired shape and sized dumplings and transfer to parchment paper. Allow to rest on the counter for at least 45 minutes to an hour.
- After the broth has been simmering for about an hour, remove the skin and bones. I like to strain it again here, just to make sure I don’t miss anything. Add about half a cup of water – just enough to offset any reduction that occurred while simmering. Then add your onion powder and celery salt. Adjust seasonings to taste as needed.
- When the dumplings are ready to cook, bring the broth to a low boil, then add dumplings one by one. Do not stir them or drop them on top of each other.
- After you’ve added all of your dumplings and they’ve puffed up and are floating at the top (2-3 minutes), gently stir and add your shredded chicken. Crack in some more black pepper, cover the pot halfway and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- The dumplings should be tender and not at all doughy. If you like a creamier pastry, you can stir together 1 tsp of cornstarch and 1 tsp of cold water, and add that into the pot during the final cooking. Keep in mind that the dumplings will thicken the broth naturally as it sits.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 180 minutes
