How to make old fashioned chicken and dumplings
Chicken and dumplings is pure comfort in a bowl. You get tender shredded chicken, a rich savory broth, and soft dumplings that cook up fluffy and light. It’s the kind of dinner that feels like home, especially on chilly nights.
My mum made it for us a lot whenever it got cold. I remember the smell that filled every room of the house before dinner was even announced, as we waited eagerly.
This old-fashioned chicken and dumplings recipe keeps it classic and practical. You’ll learn how to build a flavorful broth, thicken it to the perfect stew-like consistency, and cook dumplings so they turn tender inside, not gummy or raw.
How to make old-fashioned chicken and dumplings
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs ( you can also use rotisserie chicken)
- Salt
- Black pepper (approx. 1 tsp, divided)
- 300g (1 large) white onion, medium diced
- 150g (3-4 stalks) of celery, medium diced
- 150g (3-5 medium) carrots, diced
- 150g (1 medium) fennel bulb, chopped
- 20g (4-5 cloves) garlic, pressed
- 115g (1 stick) butter
- 135g (1c) all-purpose flour (or sub with cup for cup gluten free flour)
- 100g (1/2c) dry white wine
- 1200g (5c) chicken broth
- 100g (1/2c) heavy cream
- 3-4 sprigs thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2g (3/4t) poultry seasoning
- 200g frozen peas
Dumplings:
- 360g (3c) all-purpose flour
- 8g (1 2/3t) coarse salt
- 12g (2 1/2T) baking powder
- 4g (1 1/2t) black pepper
- 75g (5T) unsalted butter, melted
- 340g (1 1/2C whole milk)
1. For this recipe, I am using six boneless, skinless chicken. We’re going to start by seasoning them with black pepper and a strong
pinch of salt maybe a half teaspoon per side.
2. Flip them over and hit them on the backside with more salt.
3. Once the thighs are all seasoned, it’s time to roast them in 400F oven for about 30 minutes.
4. While the thighs roast, it’s time to cut the veggies. Starting with onion, dice them into nice medium sized pieces. Next, grab a medium fennel bulb, cut it in half, cut out the woody core and then chop it into a medium sized just like the onions. Same with the carrots and the celery. Finish your veggies with by mincing the garlic into the veggie mix.
5. After 30 minutes, the thighs should be well roasted and ready to pull out. 30 minutes of roasting so I’ll pull them. Allow them to cool.
6. Next, grab a heavy bottom pot that’s about 6 and 3/4 quartz deep on the stove over medium heat. Add in a whole stick of butter and allow it to melt.
7. Once butter is melted, its time to put in all the veggies we has prepared before. Stir them in and allow the veggies to sweat. The goal here is for veggies to release their moisture and soften without browning. We do not wany any browned bits.
8. After 6 to 8 minutes of stirring, these vegetables are properly sweat so next in goes in the all purpose flour and stir.
9. Continue to stir until the flour is probably mixed with no lumps.
10. Add in a splash of dry white wine about 100g to help you scrape and deglaze the bottom of the
pot to get rid of any bits that might get stuck.
11. Next add in the chicken broth and heavy cream.
.
12. Next in goes three sprigs of thyme a couple of bay leaves and some poultry seasoning to enhance that chicken flavor.
13. As the roux cooks, its now time to cut up the chicken thigs, slice them first and them dice into bite-sized pieces. Similar to what you would have gotten with a rotisserie chicken.
14. Add the chopped chicken cubes to the pot with the frozen peas and stir well to combine while also scraping the bottom of the pot to make sure the thickened liquid isn’t sticking to the bottom.
15. Turn the heat to medium low or lower and allow the mix to simmer for 5 minutes.
16. To make the dumpling dough, start by warming up the liquid. In a sauce pan, warm up butter and milk I warmed them together just until butter is melted and stir to combine.
17. Next, in a bowl, combine the all purpose flour with salt, black pepper and baking powder. While the baking powder seems a bit too much, it’s what will give that that plum dumpling with extra lift.
18. Grab my wet ingredients from the stove and stream into the dry ingredients while stirring gently to combine. Do NOT over mix. For this sough, don’t want any gluten formation as that will result in dumplings that are tough and. The goal is light and flaky
19. Before, adding the dough to the chicken mixture, always taste for season and adjust accordingly.
20. Now the number of dumpling you can drop into the mixture will vary depending on how large your pot is. I’ll drop in 12
to 16 dumplings.
21. In my opinion the perfect size dumpling is made by two teaspoons. To get a proper dumpling, quinel them(pass the dough
back and forth between two spoons to round it off into the perfect shape.)
22. Once you have all dumplings in the pot, lower the heat and pop on a lid and then set a timer for 15 minutes.
23. 15 minutes later, the dumplings will have grown a lot and expanded to perfectly fill the space available to them.
24. Before turning off the heat, test by scoop one dumpling onto a plate and cutting into it to make sure it’s not gluey on the
inside. It should be super fluffy and cooked all the way through. The chicken mixture should also be thick and glossy.
25. Turn off the stove , serve and enjoy!!
Important Recipe Notes
- Use the Chicken Fat , don’t Throw It Away. The chicken fat you have after roasting the chicken can be a powerful flavor booster when adding to the veggies, make use of it to flavor the veggies..
- Check the seasoning before the dumplings go in, the dumpling will absorb the broth once the go in, so if your broth is flat, so will your dumpling.
- Don’t overmix the dumpling dough. An overmix dough will result in chewy dumpling. Mix until the wet and dry ingredients are mixed and then stop.
- Gentle simmer the dumplings, never boil. While a rolling boil might seem it might cook faster, it will likely result in dumpling that are cooked outside yet still raw on the inside. Also, high heat will likely cause the thick chicken broth to stick to the bottom and burn.
- Finish with acids such as; lemon juice or white wine vinegar to balance heavy flavors such as with this recipe resulting in a broth that tastes deep and complex.
How to make old fashioned chicken and dumplings
Ingredients
Method
- Lay out your chicken thighs on a wire rack an season both sides with salt and pepper
- Once seasoned, roast them in 400F oven for about 30 minutes.
- Prep your veggies; dice the onions and fennel bulb. Same with the carrots and the celery.
- Transfer all into a bowl and mince the garlic into the veggie mix
- After 30 minutes, pull the chicken thighs from the oven. Allow them to cool.
- Grab a heavy bottom pot and place on the stove over medium heat.
- Add in a whole stick of butter and allow it to melt.
- Put in all the veggies we has prepared before
- Stir and allow the veggies to sweat and release their moisture
- After 6 to 8 minutes of stirring, add in all purpose flour and stir.
- Stir until the flour is probably mixed with no lumps
- Add in a splash of dry white wine to scrape and deglaze the bottom of the pot
- Add in the chicken broth and heavy cream and stir
- Next, add in bay leaves and poultry seasoning
- As the roux cooks, cut up the chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces.
- Add the chopped chicken cubes to the pot with the frozen peas and stir well to combine
- Turn the heat to medium low or lower and simmer for 5 minutes
- Taste for season and adjust accordingly
- In a sauce pan, warm up butter and milk until butter is melted and stir to combine
- Next, in a bowl, combine the all purpose flour with salt, black pepper and baking powder.
- Grab wet mixture from the stove and stream into the dry ingredients while stirring gently to combine. Do NOT over mix.
- Once dumpling dough is ready, we can add it to the chicken sauce on the stove
- Use two tablespoons to scoop out dough from the bowl, shape and drop into the pot
- The number of dumpling you can drop into the mixture will vary depending on how large your pot is
- Once you have all dumplings in the pot, lower the heat and pop on a lid and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Once timer is up, scoop one dumpling onto a plate and cutting into it to make sure it’s fully cooked through
- Turn off the stove and rest for 5-minutes
- Serve and enjoy!!
What goes with chicken and dumplings ( serving ideas)
Chicken and dumplings a complete meal on its own. It has protein, veggies, and starch. It’s rich and filling, so keep the sides simple. Best pairings:
- Cornbread is definitely the most traditional pairing.
-
Simple green salad with a tangy dressing.
-
Vinegar slaw for crunch and brightness.
-
Roasted green beans or broccoli for contrast.
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