Chrissy Teigen's Chicken & Dumplings
These chicken and dumplings are to die for! Making the broth from scratch and letting it simmer for hours really takes this dish to another level of flavor. I wouldn’t classify this dish as being incredibly hard. The only tricky part (for me at least) was when it came to the dumplings and not over cooking them. Don’t worry, I’ll give you tips and tricks along the way to ensure yours will turn out fabulous!
Fun story:The first time I made this dish I had just moved into my house. I had my mom in town and my mother-in-law over and was nervous about messing it up and making them eat sub-par dumplings. But plot twist, they turned out fantastic. Even though I messed up on the directions and forgot to cover the dutch oven while the dumplings were cooking and just threw the lid on there during the last couples minutes. But hey, it was my first time.
So speed ahead to when my best friend and her husband came out to visit. I have never been able to cook for them, so I really wanted to pull out all the stops and make this dish for them. Ya know, considering it knocked my socks off the first time. BUT THIS TIME, I decided to follow the directions and keep the lid on the entire time the dumplings were cooking. Yeah, they tasted like golf balls. I completely over cooked them. I spent 3 hours to cook a meal that tasted like a sporting event in your mouth and was horrified. Moral of the story, watch your damn dumplings and don’t end up with rocks as your meal. And yes, if you couldn’t tell, I’m still totally bitter about it till this day. But don’t worry I made it AGAIN after that and nailed it!
DS Difficulty Rating: 4/5
Serves 6
Active Time: 1 Hour
Total Time: 2 Hours and 30 Minutes
Author: Chrissy Teigen
Cookbook:Cravings, Hungry for More
MAKE THE SOUP
Step One: Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Working in two batches, brown the chicken until golden, about 4 minutes per side. (If the pot is looking a little dark on the bottom, splash in some water and scrape up any browned bits between batches, and keep those juices with the chicken.)
Step Two: Return all the chicken to the pot and add 8 cups water, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to boil, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, and cook for 1 hour.
Step Three: Strain the broth through a colander over a large bowl (there should be about 8 cups liquid; skim off some of the fat if you want). Discard the bay leaf nd herb springs Using two forks or a pair of tongs, pick the chicken meat off the bones (discard the bones and skin and set aside).
Step Four: In the same Dutch oven, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring, until the carrots begin to soften, about 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until all the flour has been absorbed and darkens a bit, about 5 minutes. Add the strained broth, the chicken meat, and the potato, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the broth thickens, about 20 minutes. Stir in cream, if using. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
WHILE THE BROTH SIMMERS, MAKE THE DUMPLING DOUGH
Step Five: In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and melted butter. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and stir gently with a fork until just incorporated (the batter will be thick, don’t overmix, which could toughen the proceedings). Spoon up 1 tablespoon of the batter and use a second spoon to push it off into the simmering soup. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover and cook until the dumplings are fluffy and tender, about 15 minutes. (I only cover them the last 5 minutes). Divide the soup and dumplings among bowls. Garnish with something green, if you want.
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Chicken and Dumplings
FOUR THE SOUP
4 pounds bone-in (skin on chicken parts)
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 bay leaf
2 thyme sprig (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
1 rosemary sprig (or ½ teaspoon dried rosemary)
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion (cut into ½ inch dice)
2 celery stalks (cut into ½ inch dice)
¼ cup all purpose flour
1 large potato (peeled and diced)
¼ cup heavy cream (optional)
FOR THE DUMPLINGS
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons butter (melted)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
MAKE THE SOUP
Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Working in two batches, brown the chicken until golden, about 4 minutes per side. (If the pot is looking a little dark on the bottom, splash in some water and scrape up any browned bits between batches, and keep those juices with the chicken.)
Return all the chicken to the pot and add 8 cups water, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to boil, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, and cook for 1 hour.
Strain the broth through a colander over a large bowl (there should be about 8 cups liquid; skim off some of the fat if you want). Discard the bay leaf nd herb springs Using two forks or a pair of tongs, pick the chicken meat off the bones (discard the bones and skin and set aside).
In the same Dutch oven, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring, until the carrots begin to soften, about 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until all the flour has been absorbed and darkens a bit, about 5 minutes. Add the strained broth, the chicken meat, and the potato, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the broth thickens, about 20 minutes. Stir in cream, if using. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
WHILE THE BROTH SIMMERS, MATH THE DUMPLING DOUGH
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and melted butter. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and stir gently with a fork until just incorporated (the batter will be thick, don’t overmix, which could toughen the proceedings). Spoon up 1 tablespoon of the batter and use a second spoon to push it off into the simmering soup. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover and cook until the dumplings are fluffy and tender, about 15 minutes. (I only cover them the last 5 minutes). Divide the soup and dumplings among bowls. Garnish with something green, if you want.
Recipe reprinted from Cravings, Hungry for More: Copyright © 2018 by Chrissy Teigen. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.
