Chicken and dumplings is a dish popular in South and Midwestern part of the United States. It is essentially biscuit dough (the dumplings) boiled in chicken soup. Nothing is more comforting than sitting down with a bowl of piping hot chicken and dumplings soup on a cold rainy day.
This much-beloved comfort food has played a significant part of the American culture. While chicken and dumplings are a huge staple in many households across the United States, it originated from the Great Depression. This dish was considered a mainstay of many impoverish families during harsh economic times in the country.
Chicken and dumplings are usually prepared with a combination of chicken meat and broth as well as dumplings, salt, and pepper for seasoning.
In this article, we will be discussing all things chicken and dumplings, with tips on how to thicken chicken and dumpling broth and creating your own poultry blend as well as a recipe.
So, if you’re looking for a guide on how to make an elevated version of chicken and dumplings, keep on reading.
But first, if you want to up your dumpling game, here are 3 books that you should look at:
Chicken and Dumpling Recipe
While the original basic recipe of chicken and dumplings may seem rather bland there are a couple of ways to spruce up the beloved dish. However, if you’re looking for a super-easy to make chicken and dumpling recipe here’s a great recipe for you.
With all the ingredients already ready-made from the cooked chicken to the instant biscuit dough, you can make chicken and dumplings in under an hour.
Ingredients you will need for the elevated version of chicken and dumplings
- 4 cups worth of chicken broth
- 3 cups of cooked chicken (shredded)
- 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1/4 tsp of poultry seasoning
- 1 can of Pillsbury Buttermilk biscuits
- 2 medium-sized carrots (chopped)
- 3 pcs of celery (chopped)
Instructions to follow
- To get started, heat up the chicken meat and broth over boiling medium-high heat and add poultry seasoning. Then reduce heat to low.
- After adding the seasoning, cover the pot and let it simmer for about five minutes, stirring from time-to-time.
- After five minutes, increase the heat to medium-high let it turn to a low boil.
- To start preparing the Pillsbury instant buttermilk biscuits, in a lightly floured flat counter space, roll each biscuit and cut into ½ inch-wide strips.
- Once the biscuit strips are ready to toss them (one at a time) into the boiling chicken soup.
- To complete the chicken and dumpling dish, add in the carrots and celery and reduce heat to low. Cover and let it simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the dumplings from sticking at the bottom of the pot.
- After 15 to 20 minutes you take off the pot and set aside to let it cool before serving.
Helpful Tips to Further Elevate Chicken and Dumpling
Make your own poultry seasoning
It is a well-known fact that one of the best ways to elevate any dish is through the use of different herbs and spices. When it comes to seasoning the chicken in your chicken and dumplings dish, using poultry seasoning is the easiest route to amp up the flavor.
However, if you don’t have poultry seasoning in your spice cabinet, you can make your own! Create your own blend of poultry seasoning with spices and herbs that you have at home.
Here are some herbs and spices that are great for poultry seasoning:
- Sage
- Thyme
- Marjoram
- Rosemary
- Nutmeg
- Black pepper
Add in More Ingredients
You can go beyond the standard carrots and celery in your chicken and dumplings dish, there are a lot of other vegetables that are great to add to the dish.
Try adding in the following vegetables to your dish:
- Leeks
- Broccoli
- Green beans
- Sugar snap peas
While making chicken and dumplings seems like an easy dish to make, there are times when your chicken and dumplings end up a little too runny to you liking. To solve this issue, here’s a way on how to thicken Chicken and dumplings with just a couple of simple ingredients.
And guess what? Your only gonna need two ingredients, two tablespoons of cornstarch and ¼ cup of whole milk.
How To Thicken Chicken and Dumpling
Follow these simple steps to successfully thicken chicken and dumpling soup:
- Add the dumplings to a pot and let it cook through. By letting the dumplings cook properly, the flour in them will actually help in thickening up the soup. Leave the dumplings to simmer for longer, depending on how thick you want the soup to be.
- Combine both the cornstarch and milk together and mix till smooth. Make sure that the cornstarch doesn’t leave any lumps in the mix.
- Pour in the milk and cornstarch mixture into the chicken and dumplings and stir until smooth.
- To see the cornstarch mixture in full thickening effect, bring the chicken and dumplings into a boil for a minute. As the chicken and dumplings are brought to a boil, continue to stir to prevent the bottom from burning.
- After a minute, remove the pot from heat and set aside to cool. As the chicken and dumplings cool they will start to thicken.
- Give it one last stir and serve.
From taking a look at where chicken and dumplings originated from its cultural significance today, it is fascinating to see how historical events like the Great Depression have a huge effect on today’s modern cuisine.
Again, if you are looking to improve your dumpling, you definitely should check these cookbooks:
