My oh my! Time has just been slipping away these last two months. Seriously; how on earth is it December already? I know, I've been awful at keeping this up to date, but I had a small run in with the lack of desire to cook.
Let me give you a little bit of background on this dish: My very Southern Grandmother (we'll just call her Grandma South) has plated up Chicken n' Dumplins since, I'd assume, she got married to Southern Grandpa (may he rest in peace). I've had this weird love-hate relationship with Chicken n' Dumplins for many years. Something about the texture and the many variations you run across living all over the country. Some people just weren't getting it "right".
Last year I was standing in my kitchen looking at my brand new dutch oven and trying to figure out what I wanted it's first meal to be. It dawned on me then: I missed my comfort food from the South and I should feel this recipe in my blood. Well...I was half right lol. The one thing I couldn't figure out while I was standing there the next day looking at chicken breasts (I don't do the whole chicken; I just don't have time), chicken stock, and a bunch of herbs was, "How on earth do I make the dumplins??"
That's right, in all these years and I never learned how to make them. I knew how I liked them, but I didn't know what on earth I was doing. So I did what all people of my generation and younger do...I Google'd. I took bits and pieces from blogs and recipe sites and kind of said, "To heck with it. Flour, baking soda, salt, and corn meal is what I'm going to do." (I just so happened to have corn meal on hand and really needed to use it.)
Thus...it began. Last night, I made it for a second time for my Dad. This time, I used bonless, skinless chicken thighs I had found on sale.
Chicken:
* 6-7 bonless, skinless, chicken thighs
* 2-32oz containers of chicken broth/stock
* 2-3 sprigs of Rosemary
* Handful of fresh sage leaves
* apx. 2 garlic cloves, minced
* Salt and pepper
Dumplins:
* 2 1/2 c. flour
* 1/2 - 3/4 c. corn meal (I use yellow, but if white floats your boat, go for it.)
* 3/4 tsp baking soda
* 3/4 tsp salt
* 3-5 Tbsp butter
* 1 c. milk (you may need less - just go 1/4 c at a time)
Chicken:
- Bring to a boil 2-32oz things of chicken stock.
- Add in a few twigs of rosemary and some sage leaves (really; any herbs you want)
- Throw in some other seasonings if you want (I tend to use a small bit of red pepper flakes, some Herbs de Provance and whatever else I feel it needs to suit my pallet at the moment)
- Add about 6-7 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or 3-4 chicken breasts; I just happen to prefer the flavor of chicken thighs.
- Boil until they are cooked through. Remove them from the stock and set on a plate to cool down.
- Remove the rosemary twigs and sage leaves.
- Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred it with your hands or two forks. (I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of this last night, but I assume you all can figure out how to shred chicken).
- Combine flour, cornmeal, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
- Add butter by the Tbsp and mix with your hands until the mixture starts to look like little peas.
- Add milk 1/4c at a time until it forms a stiff dough.
- Roll out onto a floured surface until the dough is about 1/8-1/4" thick.
- Cut into long ribbons and then cut across until you have rectangles measuring between 1"w x 1 1/2-2" long.
- Add the shredded chicken back to the pot and make sure the stock has a rolling boil.
- Add the dough for the dumplins 1/4 at a time (this allows them to plump and 'cook' without cooking into one another).
- Once you've finished adding the dumplins (the pot should seem like it's overcrowded), make allow the contents to keep on rolling - stir occasionally so that nothing sticks to the bottom. KEEP THE LID OFF!
- Appx 20-30 minutes later, you should have a nice, thickish stew texture with well incorporated dumplins and chicken. Feel free to turn the heat down to low.
This is just before it hits that *perfect* texture for me
