#My recipes chicken and dumplings full#

We leave out the sherry because we don’t keep any around it’s fantastic even without it, so don’t pass up this one if you don’t have any. Our recipe is a bit different (comes from their Soups and Stews cookbook - uses carrots and celery, but no tarragon and leeks, and calls for a whole chicken so you end up making your own stock) but looks incredibly similar. My husband just ate the last serving of our CI chicken ‘n dumplings today for lunch. When fully cooked, the dumplings will have doubled in size. Cover the stew with the dumplings, leaving about 1/4 inch between each. To make the dumplings: Gather a golf-ball-sized portion of the dumpling batter onto a soup spoon, then push the dumpling onto the stew using a second spoon. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the dumplings have doubled in size, 15 to 18 minutes. Following the steps below, drop golf-ball-sized dumplings over the top of the stew, about 1/4 inch apart (you should have about 18 dumplings). Return the stew to a simmer, stir in the peas and tarragon, and season with salt and pepper. Stir the warmed milk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until incorporated and smooth.ĥ. Microwave the milk and fat in a microwave-safe bowl on high until just warm (do not over-heat), about 1 minute. For the dumplings: Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Shred the chicken, discarding the bones, then return it to the stew.Ĥ. Allow the sauce to settle for a few minutes, then skim the fat from the surface using a wide spoon. Cover and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked and tender, about 1 hour.ģ. Nestle the chicken, with any accumulated juices, into the pot. Stir in the broth, milk, thyme, and bay leaves.

Whisk in the sherry, scraping up any browned bits. Add the leeks, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 7 minutes.

Add the butter to the Dutch oven and melt over medium-high heat. Return the pot to medium-high heat and repeat with the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and the remaining chicken. Transfer the chicken to a plate and remove the browned skin. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 10 minutes.

Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. For the stew: Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper.

#My recipes chicken and dumplings full#

Now, I’m not of the belief that chicken soup can cure a world of problems–I don’t think it’s going to fix everything just yet–but I am the kind of person who likes to live in hope, and who thinks it’s easier to deal from a place with a belly full of warmth.Ĭhicken and Dumplings with Leeks and TarragonĪdapted from Cook’s Illustrated, February 2005ĬI notes that you should not use low-fat or fat-free milk in this recipe, and that you should start the dumpling dough only when you’re ready to top the stew with the dumplings.Ĥ tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick)Ģ medium leeks, white and llight green parts only, cut in half lengthwise and then into 1-inch piecesĦ tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flourģ tablespoons minced fresh tarragon leavesģ tablespoons reserved chicken fat (or unsalted butter)ġ. I had never had chicken and dumplings before, but wow, are they tasty and just perfect for the freezing winter when you need something substantial. I’m very awkward when I find myself under the spotlight, so when I said thank you, I tried to change the subject and find out if she had a favorite recipe and guess what–she did!Īnd now I owe Joy an extra thank you. The recipe comes from Cooks Illustrated, but by way of a writer for Philadelphia Style Magazine, Joy Manning, who had been kind enough to think of me for an article she wrote this fall (PDF a few bullets down over here) about food blogging. In fact, sometimes, messy and deliciously imperfect is just what I needed, whether I realized it initially or not. But I’m not above falling in love with a dish that doesn’t give a damn about my desire to control its every aspect. You accidentally measured wrong and now the aforementioned brownie bars aren’t all even. You over-browned an edge of the cake but it has absolutely no bearing on the final flavor. Nope, I’m thinking that being a perfectionist isn’t about so much what you do, but how you react when little, obviously unsubstantial things go wrong. Oh, and I have been known to cut cookie bars with a ruler, but I never thought it was about being crazed with perfection–I just don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t use a tool readily available to them. I never considered myself one before fussy, maybe needly and exacting at times. I’ve been thinking this week–probably more than anyone should–about what it means to be a perfectionist.